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SKETCHES  OF  LIBERIA; 

I 

COMPRISING 

A  BRIEF  ACCOUNT 


i 

I  GEOGRAPHY,  CLIMATE,   PRODUCTIONS, 

AND  DISEASES, 


I 

\ 

I          REPUBLIC   OF  LIBERIA. 

H 

! 


BY    J. 

Lato  Colonial  Physician  and  U.  S.  Agent  in  Liberia. 


WASHINGTON  : 

;  >  K  i:  .  i'  in  \  r  i  ' 


VV^ 

.  -- 


SKETCHES  OF  LIBERIA: 


COMPRISING 


A  BRIEF  ACCOUNT 


GEOGRAPHY,  CLIMATE,   PRODUCTIONS, 
AND  DISEASES, 


OF    THE 


REPUBLIC   OF   LIBERIA. 


BY    J.    W.    LUGENBEEL, 

Late  Colonial  Physician'knd  U.  S.  Agent  in  Liberia, 


WASHINGTON : 

C.   ALEXANDER,    PRINTER, 
1850. 


US 


CONTENTS. 


Page. 
Introduction , 5 

SKETCH  NO.  I. 
Geography 6 

SKETCH  NO.  II. 
Settlements 9 

SKETCH  NO.  III. 
Climate  and  Seasons ? 12 

SKETCH  NO.  IV. 
Productions 16 

SKETCH  NO.  V. 
Produttions  continued — Exportable  articles 21 

SKETCH  NO.  VI. 
Productions  continued — Animals . 2G 

SKETCH  NO.  VII. 
Diseases — Acclimating  Fever 3Q 

SKETCH  NO.  VIII. 
Diseases  continued T 35 

Conclusion B.,r ...,  3D 


M192235 


SKETCHES  OF  LIBERIA, 


INTRODUCTION. 


A  decided  conviction  of  the  necessity  of 
a  work  in  which  the  earnest  inquirer  may 
find  the  principal  topics  of  information, 
which  he  may  desire,  respecting  the  Re- 
public of  Liberia,  is  the  motive  which  has 
induced  the  author  of  these  sketches  to 
consent  to  their  publication  k  His  long 
residence  in  Liberia,  and  the  great  care 
with  which  he  endeavored  to  make  obser- 
vations, and  to  acquire  information  from 
the  most  authentic  sources,  embolden  him 
to  believe  that  these  sketches j  presented  as 
they  are  with  the  utmost  ingenuousness, 
are  worthy  the  candid  consideration  of  all 
who  desire  a  knowledge  of  the  truth ,  respect- 
ing the  condition  and  prospects  of  the  little 
African  Republic.  Though  they  may  possi- 
bly contain  some  slight  inaccuracies,  yet  the 
author  believes  that  a  more  truthful,  com- 
prehensive, and  impartial  account  of  mat- 
ters and  things  as  they  really  exist  in  Li- 
beria, has  not  been  given  to  the  public. 
And  with  no  other  motive  in  view  than  a 
desire  to  impart  needful  and  correct  infor- 
mation, he  leaves  this  little  work  to  the 
candid  perusal  of  the  unbiassed  reader  ;  in 
the  hope  that  some  good  may  result  from 
this  part  of  his  labors  in  the  cause  of  hu- 
manity. 

It  was  his  design  at  first  to  preface  these 
sketches  with  an  outline  of  the  history  of 
Liberia,  but  fearing  that  this  would  too 
greatly  swell  the  size  of  this  pamphlet, 
lie  has  concluded  to  omit  all  historical  de- 


tails i  and  to  present  a  simple  and  concise 
account  of  Liberia  as  it  is.  It  may  not  be 
amiss,  however,  to  state  briefly,  for  the 
information  of  those  persons  whose  atten- 
tion has  not  been  particularly  directed  to 
the  rise  and  progress  of  the  young  Repub- 
lic) that  the  first  company  of  emigrants 
sent  from  this  country  under  the  auspices 
of  the  American  Colonization  Society,  em- 
barked at  New  York)  in  February,  1820. 
They  did  not)  however,  succeed  in  estab- 
lishing a  permanent  asylum  for  themselves 
and  for  their  followers  and  descendants, 
until  the  early  part  of  the  year  1822 ;  at 
which  tittle  the  American  flag  was  first 
hoisted  on  Cape  Mesurado,  the  site  of  the 
present  handsome  and  flourishing  town  of 
Monrovia*  From  that  time,  the  little  co- 
lony continued  to  progress,  with  various 
trials  and  discouragements,  under  the  go- 
vernment of  the  indefatigable  Ashmun,  and 
other  white  persons  sent  out  from  time  to 
time  by  the  Colonization  Society,  until 
the  early  part  of  1839,  when,  under  the 
government  of  Thomas  Buchanan,  Esq., 
the  "  Commonwealth  "  was  established  ; 
marking  a  new  epoch  in  the  progress  as  well 
as  in  the  history  of  Liberia.  Gov.  Bu- 
chanan having  died  while  in  the  discharge 
of  the  arduous  and  responsible  duties  of  his 
station,  the  management  of  the  government, 
devolved  on  Gen.  Joseph  J.  Roberts,  the 
Lieutenant  Governor,  who  was  appointed 
Governor  cf  the  Commonwealth  by  the 


SKETCHES    OF   LIBERIA. 


Geography — Extent  of  territory. 


Colonization  Society,  soon  after  the  melan- 
choly tidings  of  the  death  of  Governor 
Buchanan  reached  the  United  States  ;  and 
who  continued  to  fill  the  office,  under  the 
auspices  of  the  Society,  until  the  establish- 
ment of  the  Republic,  and  the  consequent 
new  organization  of  the  Government. 

In  the  month  of  July,  1847,  a  convention 
of  delegates,  elected  by  the  people,  met  at 
Monrovia,  and  formed  the  Constitution  of 
the  REPUBLIC  OF  LIBERIA,  which,  with  a 
declaration  of  independence,  was  given  to 
the  people,  and  published  to  the  world. 
And  in  the  month  of  October  of  that  year, 
Gov.  Roberts  was  elected  the  first  President 
of  the  Republic.  During  the  succeeding 
year,  the  independence  of  the  Republic  of 
Liberia  was  formally  recognized  and  ac- 
knowledged by  the  Governments  of  Great 
Britain  and  France.  And  thus,  in  about 


twenty-six  years  from  the  time  of  the  found- 
ing of  a  little  colony  on  the  western  coast 
of  Africa,  composed  of  about  one  hundred 
free  persons  of  color  from  the  United  States, 
an  independent  Republic  composed  entire- 
ly of  colored  persons,  has  sprung  up  as  it 
were  on  that  distant  coast,  recognized  by 
two  of  the  most  powerful  nations  in  the 
world,  and  standing  "self-poised  and  erect," 
a  monument  of  American  benevolence, 
under  the  direction  and  fostering  care  of 
Divine  Providence. 

To  all  who  may  wish  to  peruse  a  very 
interesting,  correct,  and  strikingly  beautiful 
history  of  Liberia,  the  author  cordially  re- 
commends a  little  book  which  has  lately 
appeared,  the  "  JVeio  Republic,"  written  by 
an  American  lady,  and  published  by  the1 
Massachusetts  Sabbath  School  Society. 


SKETCH— No.  I. 


GEOGRAPHY. — That  portion  of  the  western 
coast  of  Africa  which  has  received  the  ap- 
pellation of  Liberia,  embraces  a  tract  of 
country  included  between  the  parallels  of 
40  20'  and  7°  north  latitude,  extending 
about  400  miles  along  the  coast.  All  the 
territory  which  lies  between  these  two  points 
has  been  purchased  from  the  original  pro- 
prietors and  rightful  owners  of  the  soil,  ex- 
cept two  or  three  small  tracts,  comprising  in 
all  about  twenty-five  miles  of  sea-coast. 
Negotiations  will  be  entered  into,  as  early  as 
practicable,  for  the  fair  and  honorable  pur- 
chase of  these  remaining  tracts ;  and  also  for 
that  important  section  of  country  lying  be- 
tween the  northern  boundary  of  Liberia  and 
the  Colony  of  Sierra  Leone.  It  is  hoped  and 
expected  that  these  purchases  will  soon  be 
effected;  and  that  the  whole  line  of  the  sea- 
coast  between  the  British  Colony  and  the 


south-eastern  boundary  of  "Maryland 
in  Liberia,"  (about  500  miles.)  will  soon 
be  under  the  jurisdiction  and  government  of 
the  Republic  and  the  Maryland  Colony. 

The  first  tract  was  purchased  in  the  early 
part  of  1822,  embracing  a  small  extent  of 
territory  in  the  vicinity  of  Cape  Mesurado. 
Other  portions  have,  at  different  times r 
been  purchased — the  greater  part  within  the 
last  few  years.  The  interior  boundaries  of 
the  purchased  tracts  are  generally  not  defi- 
nitely prescribed.  They  usually  extend 
from  about  ten  to  thirty  miles  from  the 
coast. 

In  no  instance,  have  the  natives,  from 
whom  the  land  was  purchased,  been  re- 
quired to  remove  their  residences,  or  to 
abandon  their  usual  customs,  except  that 
of  trading  in  slaves,  and  the  practice  of 
such  superstitious  rites  or  ceremonies  as 


NOTE. — Since  the  above  was  put  in  type,  information  has  been  received  from  Liberia  of  the 
purchase,  except  two  small  tracts  of  about  five  miles  each,  of  all  the  territory  above  refprred  to,  in- 
cluding Gallinas,  which,  until  very  lately,  was  one  of  the  most  noted  slave-marts  on  the  coast  of 
Africa. 


SKETCHES   OF    LIBERIA. 


Appearance  of  the  Country— Water— Soil  and  Rivers. 


tend  to  deprive  any  of  their  fellow  beings 
of  life.  And,  in  all  the  written  contracts 
which  have  been  enfered  into  between  the 
Agents  of  the  Colonization  Society  and  the 
native  chiefs,  the  latter  have  invariably  ob- 
ligated themselves,  in  behalf  of  the  people 
over  whom  they  preside,  to  conform  to  the 
laws  and  regulations  of  the  Liberia  govern- 
ment. 

As  in  most  other  countries,  similarly 
situated,  the  land  in  the  immediate  vicinity 
of  the  ocean  in  Liberia,  is  generally  low; 
and,  in  some  places,  it  is  very  marshy. 
There  are  some  elevated  spots,  however ; 
such  as  those  on  which  the  villages  of  Mon- 
rovia and  Harper  are  located.  The  land 
generally  becomes  more  elevated  towards 
the  interior;  and,  in  some  places,  within 
fifty  miles  of  the  coast,  it  is  quite  mountain- 
ous. 

Far  as  the  eye  can  reach  "from  the  highest 
points  of  land  in  the  vicinity  of  the  ocean, 
the  whole  country  presents  the  appearance 
of  a  deep-,  unbroken  forest,  with  hill-top 
rising  above  hill-top  towards  the  Vast  inte- 
rior; the  country  consisting,  hot  as  is  sup- 
posed by  some  persons,  of  arid  plains  and 
burning  sands,  but  of  hills  and  valleys, 
covered  wkh  the  verdure  of  perpetual  spring. 
The  country  is  well  watered: — many  beau- 
tiful streams  may  be  seen  winding  their 
way  amidst  blooming  flowers  and  wild 
shrubbery;  and  many  cooling  springs  of 
clear,  sparkling  water  invite  the  weary 
traveler  to  linger  and  quench  his  thirst.  In 
all  the  settlements  in  Liberia,  good  water 
can  be  procured  without  much  difficulty; 
and  though  in  the  'dry  season,  as  in  this 
country  after  a  long  dry  spell  in  summer, 
some  of  the  springs  fail,  for  a  time;  yet,  as 
good  water  can  always  be  obtained  by  dig- 
ing  wells,  and  as  many  of  the  springs  never 
fail,  there  need  not  be  any  fear  about  getting 
plenty  of  good  water  at  any  time  in  the 
year. 

Soil.  The  soil  of  Liberia,  like  that  of  [ 


other  countries,  varies  in  appearancft,  quali- 


ty, and  productiveness.  That  of  the  uplands, 
though  generally  much  inferior  to  that  of 
the  low  lands,  is  better  adapted  for  some 
articles.  The  upland  soil  usually  consists 
of  a  reddish  clay,  more  or  less  mixed  with 
soft  rocks  and  stones,  containing  consider- 
able quantities  of  iron.  That  of  the  low- 
lands, in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  the 
ocean,  consists  principally  of  sand;  and  it 
is  really  astonishing  to  perceive  how  well 
many  vegetables  will  grow  in  this  kind  of 
soil,  even  within  fifty  yards  of  the  otfean, 
in  some  places.  Besides  this  sandy  soil-, 
there  are  two  other  varieties  of  lowland 
soil ;  one  of  which  is  that  on  the  banks  of 
the  rivers,  within  a  few  miles  of  the  sea: 
this  consists  of  a  loose,  deep,  black  mould; 
which  is  peculiarly  adapted  to  the  growth 
of  those  kinds  of  vegetables  which  thrive 
best  during  the  dry  season.  The  other 
variety  is  that  which  is  generally  found  ex- 
tending back  from  the  banks  of  the  rivers, 
farther  from  the  sea  than  the  last  named: 
this  consists  of  a  light-colored  clay,  more 
or  less  tempered  with  sand;  and  it  is  well 
adapted  to  almost  every  kind  of  vegetable 
which  will  thrive  in  tropical  climates. 

Rivers.  There  are  no  very  large  livers  in 
Liberia;  and,  although  some  of  them  are 
from  one-fourth  to  three-fourths  of  a  mile 
wide,  for  fifty  miles  or  more  from  their  en- 
trance into  the  ocean ;  yet,  none  of  them 
are  navigable  to  a  greater  distance  than 
twenty  miles;  the  navigation  being  obstruct- 
ed by  rapids.  The  St.  Paul's,  the  St. 
John's,  and  the  Junk  are  the  largest ;  and, 
indeed,  they  are  the  only  rivers  of  any 
considerable  length  or  width.  The  other 
principal  rivers  are  the  Cape  Mount,  the 
Mechlin,  the  New  Cess,  the  Grand  Cess, 
the  Sanguin,  the  Sinou,  and  the  Grand 
Sesters.  Some  of  these  present  a  bold  ap- 
pearance at  their  mouths;  but  they  are  all 
comparatively  short ;  and  none  of  them  are 
navigable  for  boats,  or  even  for  canoey, 
more  than  twenty  miles. 


SKETCHES   OF  LIBERIA. 


Rivers— St.  Paul's— St.  John's  and  Junk. 


The  St.  Paul's  river  is  a  beautiful  stream 
of  water.  It  is  three-fourths  of  a  mile  wide 
at  the  widest  part,  (at  Caldwell,)  and  about 
three-eighths  of  a  mile  wide  at  Miilsburg, 
about  fourteen  miles  from  its  mouth. 

The  banks  of  this  river  rise  from  ten  to 
twenty  feet  above  the  water;  and,  except 
in  places  which  have  been  cleared,  they  are 
covered  with  large  forest  trees;  among  which 
may  be  seen  the  graceful  palm,  rearing  aloft 
its  green-tufted  head,  and  standing  in  all 
its  pride  and  beauty,  the  ornament  and  the 
glory  of  its  native  land.  The  St.  Paul's  is 
perhaps  the  longest  river  in  Liberia.  It 
is  studded  with  many  beautiful  islands, 
abounding  in  camwood,  palm,  and  many 
other  valuable  forest  trees  ;  and  its  banks 
furnish  many  beautiful  sites  for  residences. 
Many  native  hamlets  may  be  seen  on  the 
banks  of  this  lovely  river — the  homes  of 
the  untutored  children  of  the  forest — the 
benighted  sons  and  daughters  of  Africa. 
The  St  Paul's  bifurcates  about  three  miles 
from  its  mouth:  the  principal  stream  rolls 
on  towards  the  ocean,  while  the  other  fork 
flows  in  a  south-easterly  direction,  almost 
parallel  with  the  beach,  and  unites  with  the 
little  Mesurado  river  near  its  mouth;  and 
thus  an  island  is  formed,  about  eight  miles 
long,  and  from  one  to  two  in  width,  called 
Bushrod  Island.  This  latter  fork  of  the  river 
is  called  Stockton  Creek,  in  honor  of  Com- 
modore Stockton  of  the  United  States  Navy. 

The  St.  John's  river  is  also  a  beautiful 
stream.  It  is  about  sixty  miles  south-east 
of  the  St.  Paul's  ;  and  it  flows  through  that 
part  of  Liberia,  which  is  known  as  the 
Grand  Bassa  country.  At  the  widest  point, 
it  is  nearly  or  quite  a  mile  wide.  Its  length, 
however,  is  supposed  to  be  less  than  that 
of  the  St.  Paul's.  The  St.  John's  is  also 
studded  with  numerous  islands  ;  the  largest 
of  which  is  Factory  Island,  about  three 
miles  from  its  mouth.  The  banks  of  this 
river  also  rise  considerably  above  the  water  ; 


and  the  land  bordering  on  it  is  also  very 
productive. 

The  Junk  river,  which  is  about  equidis- 
tant from  the  other  two  named  rivers,  is  the 
third  in  size  and  importance.  The  main 
branch  is  supposed  to  be  equal  in  length  to 
the  St.  John's.  The  northern  branch, 
which  is  only  about  forty  miles  long,  is 
noted  as  a  thoroughfare  between  Monrovia 
and  Marshall.  At  the  place  of  embarkation , 
a  few  miles  below  its  source,  it  is  not  more 
than  five  yards  wide  ;  but  it  gradually  ex- 
[  pands  to  the  width  of  more  than  half  a 
mile. 

The  appearance  of  the  country  along  the 
banks  of  these  rivers,  and  of  the  numerous 
little  islands  which  they  form,  is  highly 
picturesque. 

The  banks  of  the  St.  Paul's  and  the  St. 
John's,  in  many  places,  present  encourag- 
ing scenes  of  agricultural  industry  ;  show- 
ing the  handiwork  of  a  people,  whose  social 
condition  is  vastly  superior  to  that  of  their 
aboriginal  neighbors;  and  who  are  thus 
placing  before  the  indolent  and  improvident 
natives,  illustrations  of  the  great  superiority 
of  the  habits  of  civilized  people  to  their 
own  degrading  customs ;  examples  which 
must  eventually  exert  a  powerful  influence 
on  the  minds  and  practice  of  the  contiguous 
native  tribes, 

And  thus,  while  the  mind  of  the  traveler 
is  oppressed  by  the  melancholy  considera- 
tion of  the  moral  and  intellectual  darkness 
of  the  scattered  tribes  of  human  beings, 
whose  desolate-looking  hamlets  frequently 
meet  his  view,  as  he  wends  his  way  amidst 
the  dense  forests  of  the  uncultivated  hills 
and  dales  of  Africa;  he  is  encouraged  to 
believe  that  the  time  will  come,  when  this 
extensive  "  wilderness  shall  be  made  glad" 
by  the  labors  of  industrious  agriculturists, 
and  when  this  vast  desert  of  intellectual  and 
moral  degradation  "shall  rejoice,  and  blos- 
som as  the  rose." 


SKETCHES   OF  LIBERIA. 


Settlements— Monrovia. 


SKETCH— No.  2. 

SETTLEMENTS. — The  villages  and  town- 
ships in  Liberia,  are  Monrovia,  New 
Georgia,  Caldwell,  Virginia,  Millsburg 
Marshall,  Edina,  Bassa  Cove,  Bexley, 
Greenville  and  Readsville.  Besides  these, 
there  are  a  few  other  localities,  which  are 
sometimes  called  by  one  name  and  some- 
times by  another. 

Monrovia  is  the  largest  and  oldest  of  ali 
the  settlements  ;  and  it  is  the  metropolis, 
and  the  seat  of  government  of  the  Republic. 
It  is  located  near  the  mouth  of  the  Mesu- 
rado  river,  (a  small  stream  about  fifteen 
miles  long,)  about  four  miles  southeast  of 
the  entrance  of  the  St.  Paul's  river  into  the 
ocean,  on  an  elevated  site,  immediately  in 
the  rear  of  Cape  Mesurado,  in  latitude  6° 
19'  North.  The  highest  point  of  the  hill 
on  which  the  village  stands,  and  which  is 
near  its  centre,  is  about  eighty  feet  above 
the  level  of  the  ocean,  and  about  three- 
fourths  of  a  mile  from  the  summit  of  the 
Cape,  which  is  about  two  hundred  and  fifty 
feet  above  the  sea.  Cape  Mesurado  is  a 
bold  promontory,  covered  with  massive 
forest  trees  and  dense  undergrowth  ;  ex- 
cept in  places  which  have  been  cleared. 
On  the  summit  of  the  Cape  is  a  light-house 
and  a  fort ;  and  along  the  sloping  declivity, 
towards  the  village  of  Monrovia,  there  are 
several  cleared  lots,  on  which  small  houses 
have  been  erected  ;  in  some  places,  afford- 
ing very  pleasant  places  of  residence.  The 
greater  part  of  the  promontory,  however, 
is  very  rocky.  The  course  of  the  coast 
north  of  the  Cape,  forms  a  kind  of  bay, 
which  generally  affords  safe  anchorage  for 
vessels  ;  and  the  cove,  near  the  base  of  the 
Cape,  affords  as  good  a  landing  on  the  beach 
as  can  be  found  on  almost  any  other  part 
of  the  coast. 

The  village  of  Monrovia,  although  more 
compact  than  any  of  the  other  settlements 
in  Liberia,  occupies  a  considerable  extent 


of  ground  ;  being  about  three-fourths  of  a 
mile  in.  length.  It  is  laid  off  with  as  much 
regularity  as  the  location  will  allow  ;  and 
the  streets,  of  which  there  are  about  fifteen 
in  number,  have  received  regular  names. 
The  village  is  divided  into  lots  of  one-fourth 
of  an  acre,  and  most  of  the  dwelling-houses 
have  a  lot  attached  to  each  of  them.  Most 
of  the  lots,  and  several  of  the  streets,  are 
adorned  with  various  tropical  fruit  trees  \J 
and  some  of  the  gardens  present  a  hand- 
some appearance.  If  the  streets  were  kept 
entirely  clear  of  weeds  and  bushes,  the 
village  of  Monrovia,  viewed  from  the  sum- 
mit of  the  Cape,  or  from  the  mouth  of  the 
Mesurado  river,  would  present  a  beautiful 
appearance,  in  contrast  with  the  dense 
forest,  by  which  it  is  almost  surrounded. 
The  houses  are  generally  one  story  or  a 
story  and  a  half  high  :  some  are  two  full 
stories.  Many  of  them  are  substantially 
built  of  stone  or  brick  ;  and  some  of  the 
best  houses  are  built  partly  of  both  these 
materials.  The  state-house  is  a  large  stone 
building,  which  was  erected  in  1843-4,  at 
an  expense  of  nearly  five  thousand  dollars. 
In  the  rear  of  this  building,  is  a  substantial 
stone  prison.  There  are  three  commodious 
stone  houses  for  public  worship  in  the 
village — Methodist,  Baptist  and  Presby- 
terian ;  nearly  all  of  the  professing  Christians 
in  the  place  being  attached  to  one  or  the 
other  of  these  religious  denominations. 

At  the  base  of  the  hill  on  which  stand  the 
principal  dwelling  houses,  there  are  several 
large  stone  buildings,  which  are  occupied 
as  stores  and  warehouses.  The  dwellings 
of  many  of  the  citizens  of  Monrovia  are 
not  only  comfortably,  but  elegantly,  and 
some  of  them  richly,  furnished  ;  and  some 
of  the  residents  of  this  little  bustling  me- 
tropolis live  in  a  style  of  ease  and  affluence, 
which  does  not  comport  with  the  contracted 
views  of  those  persons,  who  regard  a  resi- 
dence in  Africa  as  necessarily  associated 


10 


SKETCHES  OFL1BEKIA. 


New  Georgia— Caldwoll— Virginia— Millsburg  and  Marshall. 


\vith  the  almost  entire  privation  of  the  good 
things  of  this  life.  For  several  years  past, 
there  have  been  two  newspapers  published 
regularly  at  Monrovia  ;  the  "  Liberia 
Herald, "and  "  Africa's  Luminary."  The 
population  of  Monrovia  is  about  twelve 
hundred  ;  exclusive  of  native  children  and 
youths  who  reside  in  the  families  of  the 
citizens. 

New  Georgia  is  a  small  township,  located 
on  the  eastern  side  of  Stockton  Creek,  about 
five  miles  from  Monrovia.  It  is  occupied 
principally  by  native  Africans,  who  were 
formerly  slaves.  Upwards  of  two  hundred 
of  the  liberated  Africans  who  have  been,  or 
•who  now  are,  residents  of  New  Georgia, 
were  sent  to  Liberia  by  the  United  States 
Government,  at  different  times.  Many  of 
these  have  married  persons,  who  were  born 
in  the  United  States  ;  and  have  thereby 
become  more  strongly  identified  with  the 
Liberians,  as  citizens  of  the  Republic. 
Some  of  them  are  partially  educated;  and, 
a  few  years  ago,  one  of  them  occupied  a 
seat  in  the  Legislature.  As  most  of  the 
citizens  of  New  Georgia  have  taken  the 
oath  of  allegiance,  they  are  permitted  to 
enjoy  equal  immunities  with  other  citizens. 
A  great  portion  of  the  vegetables  which  are 
used  in  Monrovia  are  raised  at  New 
Georgia. 

Caldwell  is  situated  on  the  eastern  side 
of  the  St.  Paul 's  river.  The  whole  settle- 
ment, which  is  divided  for  convenience,  into 
Upper  and  Lower  Caldwell,  is  about  six 
miles  in  length,  extending  along  the  bank 
of  the  river  ;  the  nearest  part  to  Monrovia 
being  about  nine  miles  distant.  The  houses 
are  from  one  hundred  yards  to  a  quarter  of 
a  mile,  or  more,  apart ;  and,  of  course, 
this  settlement  has  not  much  the  appearance 
of  a  town.  Some  of  the  most  enterprising 
farmers  in  Liberia  reside  at  this  place. 
The  land  about  Caldwell  is  generally  re- 
markably productive. 


Virginia,  or  New  Virginia,  as  it  is  some- 
times called,  is  a  new  settlement,  formed 
principally  in  the  early  part  of  184ff.  It 
is  also  on  the  St.  Paul's  river,  opposite 
Caldwell.  This  is  the  site  of  the  United 
States  Receptacle  for  liberated  Africans, 
erected  in  1847. 

J\Kllsburg  is  the  farthest  settlement  from 
the  sea-coast  of  any  in  Liberia.  It  is  situ- 
ated on  the  northern  bank  of  the  St.  Paul's 
river,  about  fourteen  miles  from  its  mouth, 
and  about  twenty  miles  from  Monrovia. 
Like  the  other  farming  settlements,  the 
houses  generally  are  separated  at  a  consider- 
able distance  from  one  another ;  so  that, 
the  whole  township  extends  about  a  mile 
and  a  half  along  the  bank  of  the  river. 
Millsburg  is  perhaps  the  most  beautiful, 
and  one  of  the  most  healthy  locations  in 
Liberia.  The  land  is  remarkably  good, 
and  of  easy  cultivation.  A  flourishing 
Female  Academy  is  in  operation  at  this 
place,  under  the  care  of  Mrs.  Wilkins, 
missionary  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church.  And,  on  the  opposite  side  of  the 
river  is  "White  Plains,  a  mission  station  of 
the  same  Church, 

Besides  these  settlements,  there  are  nu- 
merous other  points  along  the  St.  Paul's 
river,  which  are  occupied  by  farmers ;  so 
that,  the  banks  of  this  beautiful  stream  pre- 
sent, in  many  places,  the  appearance  of 
agricultural  industry  and  comfort. 

Marshall  is  situated  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Junk  river,  about  thirty-five  miles  south  of 
Monrovia.  Most  of  the  houses  in  this 
place  are  built  along  the  sea-shore.  This 
place  is  particularly  noted  for  the  manu- 
facture of  lime;  which  is  obtained  altogether 
from  oyster  and  other  shells.  Most  of 
the  lime  that  is  used  in  Liberia  is  made  in 
the  vicinity  of  Marshall.  The  river  at 
this  place  abounds  in  oysters.  And  though 
they  are  not  quite  equal  to  those  procured 
in  some  parts  of  the  United  States,  yet  they 


SKETCHES    OF   LIBERIA. 


11 


Edina— Bsssa  Cove— Bexley— Greenville  and  Readsville. 


are  quite  palatable,  when  served  up  as  they 
ought  to  be. 

Edina  is  located  on  the  northern  bank  of 
the  St.  John 's  river,  about  half  a  mile  from 
its  mouth.  It  is  handsomely  situated  ;  and, 
in  reference  to  the  healthiness  of  the  location, 
it  is  perhaps  equal  to  most  others  in  Liberia. 
Some  of  the  citizens  of  Edina  are  engaged 
in  the  cultivation  of  exportable  articles  of 
produce. 

Bassa  Cove  is  located  at  the  junction  of 
the  Benson  river  (a  small  stream)  with  the 
St.  John's,  nearly  opposite  Edina.  Several 
of  the  citizens  of  this  place  also  have  given 
considerable  attention  to  the  cultivation  of 
coffee,  arrow-root,  and  ginger,  during  the 
last  few  years. 

Bexley  is  situated  on  the  northern  side  of 
the  St.  John's  river,  about  six  miles  from 
its  mouth.  This  place,  like  the  settlements 
on  the  St.  Paul's  river,  occupies  a  consider- 
able extent  of  territory.  It  is  divided  into 
Upper  and  Lower  Bexley ;  both  together 
extending  about  four  miles  along  the  river. 
Bexley  is  a  fine  farming  settlement ;  the 
land  is  excellent ;  and  the  location  is  com- 
paratively healthy.  Several  of  the  citizens 
of  this  place  are  pretty  actively  engaged  in 
cultivating  articles  for  exportation.  This  is 
certainly  one  of  the  most  interesting  settle- 
ments in  Liberia.  The  mission  of  the 
Baptist  Board  of  Foreign  Missions  is  located 
at  this  place  ;  also  the  head-quarters  of  the 
Southern  Baptist  Mission, 

Greenville  is  situated  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Sinou  river,  about  one  hundred  and  thirty 
miles  by  sea  southeast  of  Monrovia.  Like 
the  settlement  of  Marshall,  most  of  the 
houses  are  located  along  the  sea-shore. 
Greenville  presents  a  handsome  appearance 
from  the  anchorage.  It  is  one  of  the  most 
healthy  settlements  in  Liberia,  The  land 
in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  Greenville,  and 
indeed,  of  all  the  other  settlements  near  the 
sea-shore,  is  much  inferior  to  that  on  the 


banks  of  the  rivers,  several  miles  from 
their  entrance  into  the  ocean.  Conse- 
quently, those  persons  who  expect  to  live 
by  "  the  sweat  of  their  brow,"  in  the  culti- 
vation of  the  soil,  will  find  it  greatly  to 
their  advantage  to  locate  beyond  the  sound 
of  the  breaking  surf  of  the  ocean. 

Readsville  is  a  small  farming  settlement, 
on  the  Sinou  river,  about  five  miles  above 
Greenville.  It  was  formed  principally  by 
the  people  who  were  manumitted  by  the 
late  Mrs.  Read  of  Mississippi. 

In  every  settlement,  there  is  one  place,  or 
more,  of  public  worship,  in  which  religious 
services  are  regularly  held.  And,  in  nearly 
every  settlement,  there  is  one  regular  day 
and  Sunday  school,  or  more.  The  princi- 
pal deficiency  in  the  system  of  education  in 
Liberia,  consists  in  the  inability  to  procure 
the  services  of  a  sufficient  number  of  com- 
petent teachers.  I  trust  that  the  time  is  not 
far  distant,  when  a  more  uniform,  per- 
manent, and  effectual  system  of  education 
will  be  in  operation,  in  all  the  settlements 
in  Liberia.  Most  of  the  schools  are  sup- 
ported by  benevolent  societies  in  the  United 
States  ;  and  most  of  the  pulpits  are  filled  by 
ministers  who  receive  stated  salaries  from 
one  or  other  of  the. Missionary  Societies  in 
the  United  States. 

As  the  census  has  not  been  taken  for 
several  years,  I  cannot  give  the  exact  popu- 
lation of  the  different  settlements,  and  the 
exact  aggregate  population  of  the  Republic. 
I  think,  however,  that  the  whole  number  of 
inhabitants  of  the  Republic,  exclusive  of  the 
aborigines,  may  be  set  down  at  about  4,000. 
MARYLAND  IN  LIBERIA. 

The  Colony  of  "Maryland  in  Liberia," 
which  has  always  maintained  a  distinctive 
haracter,  and  which  has  always  been  under 
a  different  government,  from  the  Republic 
of  Liberia,  was  established  in  the  early 
part  of  the  year  1834.  Ever  since  that 
period,  it  has  continued  to  progress  in  in» 


12 


SKETCHES    OF    LIBERIA. 


Climate  and  seasons— rainy  and  dry  seasons. 


terest  and  importance  ;  and,  at  present,  it 
occupies  a  prominent  position,  as  an  asylum 
for  the  proscribed  descendants  of  Ham  ;  to 
whom  the  siren  song  of  "  My  native  land  " 
loses  its  mellowing  cadence  in  the  thrilling, 
patriotic  sound  of  "  Sweet  land  of  liberty." 

This  interesting  Colony  is  located  about 
two  hundred  and  fifty  miles  by  sea  south- 
east from  Monrovia.  Harper,  the  principal 
town  or  settlement,  is  situated  near  the 
point  of  the  Cape  ;  (Cape  Palmas,  a  bold 
projecting  promontory,  which  is  one  of  the 
most  prominent  points  or  land-marks  on  the 
western  coast  of  Africa ;)  and,  from  the 
anchorage,  it  presents  a  handsome  appear- 
ance. At  the  distance  of  about  half  a  mile 
from  Harper  is  the  town  of  East  Harper; 
In  which  are  several  beautiful  sites  fo'r 
residences,  commanding  a  fine  view  of  the 
Qcean,  and  of  the  adjacent  hills  and  vales. 
Between  these  two  villages,  there  are  two 
large  native  towns,  comprising  several 
hundred  houses,  which  present  a  marked 
contrast  with  the  comfortable  looking  dwell- 
ings of  the  colonists.  At  the  distance  of 
about  two  and  a  half  miles  beyond  East 
Harper  is  another  settlement,  called  Tub- 
mantown.  Mpst  of  the  land  near  the  road 
between  these  two  villages  is  occupied  by 
the  colonists  ;  so  that  on  both  sides  of  this 
highway,  many  neat  little  cottages  may  be 
seen,  and  many  handsome  gardens  and 
small  farms. 

The  whole  population  of  Maryland  in  Li- 
beria, exclusive  of  aborigines,  is  about  900. 

SKETCH— No.  3. 
CLIMATE  AND  SEASONS. — The  territory 
of  Liberia  being  within  a  few  degrees  of  tlie 
equator,  of  course  the  nature  of  the  climate 
is  essentially  different  from  that  of  the 
United  States,  the  vicissitudes  of  spring, 
summer,  autumn,  and  winter,  not  being  ex- 
perienced in  the  equatorial  regions  of  the 
earth ;  there  being  continued  su  mmer  weather 


throughout  the  year;  interrupted  only  by 
occasional  slight  variations  in  {he  thermo- 
metrical  state  of  the  atmosphere;  caused  by 
the  greater  strength  of  the  ordinary  breezes, 
and  by  clouds  and  rain;  which  latter  pre- 
vail so  much  more,  during  one  half  of  the 
year,  than  during  the  other  half,  as  to  give 
rise  to  the  usually  recognized  division  of 
the  year  into  two  seasons — the  wet  or  rainy 
season,  and  the  dry  season;  or,  in  common 
parlance,  "the  rains"  and  'Uhe  dries;" 
the  former  of  which  answers  nearly  to 
summer  and  autumn,  and  the  latter  to  winter 
and  spring,  in  temperate  latitudes. 

This  unqualified  and  somewhat  arbitrary 
division  of  the  year,  however,  has  led  many 
persons  into  error,  respecting  the  real  state 
of  the  weather,  during  these  two  seasons; 
some  supposing  that  during  the  rainy  sea- 
son, more  or  less  rain  falls  every  day;  and, 
on  the  other  hand,  during  the  dry  season, 
an  uninterrupted  spell  of  hot  and  dry 
weather  prevails  for  six  successive  months. 
This  is  so  far  from  being  the  case,  that,  as 
a  general  rule,  it  may  be  stated,  that  some 
rain  falls  during  every  month  in  the  year; 
and,  in  every  month,  there  is  some  fine, 
clear,  pleasant  weather.  During  my  resi- 
dence in  Liberia,  I  seldom  observed  a  de- 
viation from  this  general  rule.  Much  more 
rain,  however,  falls,  during  the  six  months 
beginning  with  May,  than  during  the  re- 
maining six  months  beginning  with  No- 
vember. It  is  difficult,  however,  to  deter- 
mine at  what  time  each  of  the  two  seasons 
actually  commences  and  closes.  As  a 
general  rule,  I  think  the  middle  of  May 
may  be  set  down  as  the  beginning  of  the 
rainy  season,  and  the  middle  of  November 
that  of  the  dry  season.  In  order,  however, 
to  give  an  accurate  and  comprehensive 
statement  of  the  character  of  the  climate  and 
seasons  of  Liberia,  it  may  be  the  best  plan, 
to  note  the  vicissitudes  of  each  month  in 
the  year,  as  they  are  usually  presented. 


SKETCHES    OF   LIBERIA. 


13 


January— harmattan  wind— February  and  March. 


January  is  usually  the  driest,  and  one  of 
the  warmest  months  in  the  year.  Some- 
times, during  this  month,  no  rain  at  all  falls; 
but  generally  there  are  occasional  slight 
showers,  particularly  at  night.  Were  it 
not  for  the  sea-breeze,  which  prevails  with 
almost  uninterrupted  regularity,  during  the 
greater  part  of  the  day,  on  almost  every 
day  throughout  the  year,  the  weather 
would  be  exceedingly  oppressive,  during 
the  first  three  or  four  months  of  the  year. 
As  it  is,  the  oppressiveness  of  the  rays  of 
the  tropical  sun,  is  greatly  mitigated  by  the 
cooling  breezes  from  the  ocean;  which 
usually  blow  from  about  10  o'clock  A.  M. 
to  about  10  P.  M.,  the  land-breeze  occupy- 
ing the  remainder  of  the  night  and  morning; 
except  for  an  hour  or  two  about  the  middle 
of  the  night,  and  about  an  hour  in  the  fore- 
noon. During  these  intervals,  the  atmo- 
sphere is  sometimes  very  oppressive.  The 
regularity  of  the  sea-breeze,  especially 
during  the  month  of  January,  is  sometimes 
interrupted  by  the  longer  continuance  of  the 
land-breeze,  which  occasionally  does  not 
cease  blowing  until  2  or  3  o'clock  P.  M. 
This  is  what  is  called  the  harmattan  wind; 
about  which  a  great  deal  has  been  written; 
but  which  does  not  generally  fully  accord 
with  the  forced  descriptions  of  hasty  ob- 
servers or  copyists. 

The  principal  peculiarity  of  the  harmattan 
wind  consists  in  its  drying  properties,  and 
its  very  sensible  coolness,  especially  early 
in  the  morning.  It  seldom,  perhaps  never, 
continues  during  the  whole  day;  and  usual- 
ly not  much  longer  than  the  ordinary  land- 
breeze,  at  other  times  in  the  year.  When 
this  wind  blows  pretty  strongly,  the  leaves 
and  covers  of  books  sometimes  curl,  as  if 
they  had  been  placed  near  a  fire;  the  seams 
of  furniture,  and  of  wooden  vessels,  some- 
times open  considerably,  and  the  skin  of 
persons  sometimes  feels  peculiarly  dry  and 
unpleasant,  in  consequence  of  the  rapid 
evaporation  of  both  the  sensible  and  the  in- 


sensible perspiration.  But  these  effects  are 
usually  by  no  means  so  great  as  they  have 
been  represented  to  be.  What  is  generally 
called  the  harmattan  season  usually  com- 
mences about  the  middle  of  December,  and 
continues  until  the  latter  part  of  February. 
During  this  time,  especially  during  the 
month  of  January,  the  atmosphere  has  a 
smoky  appearance,  similar  to  what  is  termed 
Indian  summer  in  the  United  States,  but 
generally  more  hazy. 

The  average  height  of  the  mercury  in  the 
thermometer,  during  the  month  of  January, 
is  about  85°,  it  seldom  varies  more  than 
10°,  during  the  twenty-four  hours  of  the 
day;  and  usually  it  does  not  vary  more 
than  four  degrees  between  the  hours  of  10 
A.  M.  and  10  P.  M.  During  this  month, 
however,  I  have  seen  the  mercury  stand  at 
the  lowest  mark,  at  which  I  ever  observed 
it,  in  Liberia,  that  is,  at  68°.  This  was 
early  in  the  morning,  during  the  prevalence 
of  a  strong  and  very  cool  land-breeze. 
During  this  month  I  have  also  seen  the 
mercury  stand  at  the  highest  mark,  at  which 
I  ever  observed  it — that  is,  at  90°.  The 
air  is  sometimes  uncomfortably  cool,  before 
8  o'clock  A.  M.,  during  this  month. 

During  the  month  of  February,  the  weather 
is  generally  similar  to  that  of  January. 
There  are,  however,  usually  more  frequent 
showers  of  rain;  and  sometimes,  towards 
the  close  of  this  month,  slight  tornadoes  are 
experienced ,  The  harmattan  haze  general- 
ly disappears  about  the  last  of  this  month; 
and  the  atmosphere  becomes  clear.  The 
range  of  the  thermometer  is  about  the  same 
as  in  January. 

March  is  perhaps  the  most  trying  month, 
in  the  year  to  the  constitutions  of  new- 
comers. The  atmosphere  is  usually  very 
oppressive  during  this  month — the  sun  being 
nearly  vertical.  The  occasional  showers 
of  rain,  and  the  slight  tornadoes,  which  oc- 
cur in  this  month,  do  not  usually  mitigate 
the  oppressiveness  of  the  atmosphere,  as 


14 


SKETCHES    OF   LIBERIA. 


April — Tornadoes — May  and  June. 


might  be  supposed.  The  variation  in  the 
state  of  the  atmosphere,  as  indicated  by  the 
thermometer,  seldom  exceeds  6°  during  the 
whole  of  this  month.  The  average  height 
of  the  mercury  is  about  85O. 

April  is  significantly  called  the  "  tornado 
month,"  the  most  numerous  and  most 
violent  tornadoes  usually  occurring  during 
this  month.  The  ordinary  state  of  the 
weather,  in  reference  to  the  degree  of  heat, 
and  its  influence  on  the  system,  is  not  very 
different  from  that  of  the  three  preceding 
months.  The  showers  of  rain  are  usually 
more  frequent,  however;  and  the  visitations 
of  those  peculiar  gusts,  called  tornadoes, 
are  much  more  common  in  April,  than  in 
any  other  month.  These  are  sudden,  and 
sometimes  violent  gusts,  which  occur  much 
more  frequently  at  night,  than  during  the 
day.  Although  they  usually  approach 
suddenly  and  rapidly,  yet  certain  premoni- 
tory evidences  of  their  approach  are  almost 
always  presented,  which  are  generally 
easily  recognized  by  persons  who  have 
frequently  observed  them.  They  generally 
commence  from  northeast,  or  east-northeast, 
and  rapidly  shift  around  to  nearly  south- 
east; by  which  time  the  storm  is  at  its 
height. 

At  the  commencement  of  a  tornado,  dark 
clouds  appear  above  the  eastern  horizon, 
which  rapidly  ascend,  until  a  dense  lurid- 
looking  mass  spreads  over  the  whole  hemi- 
sphere. As  the  heavy  mass  of  clouds 
ascends  and  spreads,  the  roaring  sound  of 
the  wind  becomes  stronger  and  louder, 
until  suddenly  it  bursts  forth  in  its  fury; 
sometimes  seeming  as  if  it  would  sweep 
away  every  opposing  object.  Very  seldom, 
however,  is  any  material  injury  sustained 
from  these  violent  gusts.  The  scene  is 
sometimes  awfully  grand,  for  fifteen  or 
twenty  minutes,  during  the  formation  and 
continuance  of  a  heavy  tornado.  Some- 
times the  whole  hemisphere  presents  a  scene 
of  the  deepest  gloom ;  the  darkness  of  which 


is  momentarily  illuminated  by  vivid  flashes 
of  lightning,  in  rapid  succession;  and  some- 
times tremendous  peals  of  thunder  burst 
upon  the  solemn  stillness  of  the  scene. 
The  rain  seldom  falls,  until  the  violence  of 
the  gust  begins  to  subside;  when  a  torrent 
of  rain  usually  pours  down  for  a  short  time, 
seldom  more  than  half  an  hour;  after  which, 
the  wind  shifts  around  towards  the  west; 
and  generally,  in  about  an  hour  from  the 
commencement  of  the  tornado,  the  sky  be- 
comes serene,  and  sometimes  almost  cloud- 
less. 

The  weather  during  the  month  of  May  is 
usually  more  pleasant,  than  during  the  two 
preceding  months.  The  atmosphere  is  gene- 
rally not  quite  so  warm  and  oppressive. 
Sometimes  copious  and  protracted  showers 
of  rain  fall,  during  the  latter  half  of  this 
month;  so  that  the  beginning  of  the  rainy 
season  usually  occurs  in  this  month.  Tor- 
nadoes also  occasionally  appear,  during  the 
month  of  May.  The  average  height  of  the 
mercury  in  the  thermometer  is  usually  two 
or  three  degrees  less,  than  during  the  four 
preceding  months. 

June  is  perhaps  the  most  rainy  month  in 
the  year.  More  or  less  rain  usually  falls 
nearly  every  day  or  night  in  this  month. 
Although  there  are  sometimes  clear  and 
pleasant  days  in  June;  yet,  there  are  seldom 
twenty-four  successive  hours  of  entire  free- 
dom from  rain.  The  sun  is,  however, 
seldom  entirely  obscured  for  a  week  at  a 
time;  and  he  frequently  shines  out  brightly 
and  pleasantly,  in  the  interstices  between 
the  floating  clouds,  several  times  during  the 
day;  occasionally  for  several  hours  at  a 
time.  During  this  month,  as  during  all  the 
other  rainy  months,  more  rain  always  falls 
at  night  than  in  the  day  time;  and,  indeed, 
there  are  very  few  days  in  the  year,  in 
which  the  use  of  an  umbrella  may  not  be 
dispensed  with,  sometime  during  the  ordi- 
nary business  hours.  In  the  month  of 
June,  the  atmosphere  is  always  consider- 


SKETCHES    OF   LIBERIA. 


15 


July— August— September— October— November— December.— Extremes  of  heat  and  cold. 


ably  cooler  than  during  the  preceding 
months;  and  I  have  generally  found  it  ne- 
cessary to  wear  woolen  outer  as  well  as 
under  garments;  and  to  sleep  beneath  thick 
covering  at  night,  in  order  to  be  comfortably 
warm.  The  sensible  perspiration  is  always 
much  less,  during  this  month,  and  the  five 
succeeding  months,  than  during  the  other 
six  months  in  the  year.  The  mercury  in 
the  thermometer  seldom  rises  above  80°  in 
this  month,  the  average  height  being  about 
750. 

During  the  months  of  July  and  August, 
a  great  deal  of  rain  also  generally  falls;  but 
perhaps  less  in  both  these  months  than  in 
the  preceding  one.  There  is  always  a  short 
season  of  comparatively  dry,  and  very 
pleasant  weather,  in  one  or  both  of  these 
months.  This  season  usually  continues 
from  three  to  five  weeks;  and  generally 
commences  about  the  20th  or  25th  of  July. 
Sometimes,  for  several  successive  days,  the 
eun  shines  brilliantly  and  pleasantly  all  day; 
and  no  rain  falls  at  night.  The  air,  how- 
ever, is  always  refreshingly  cool  and  agree- 
able. This  is  perhaps  the  most  pleasant 
time  in  the  year.  This  is  what  is  commonly 
called  "the  middle  dries,"  It  seems  as  if 
Providence  has  specially  ordered  this  tempo- 
rary cessation  of  the  rains,  for  the  purpose  of 
permitting  the  ripening  and  gathering  of  the 
crops  of  rice,  which  are  generally  harvested 
in  August. 

September  and  October  are  also  generally 
very  rainy  months;  especially  the  former. 
Sometimes  more  rain  falls  in  September, 
than  in  any  other  month  in  the  year.  To~ 
wards  the  close  of  October,  the  rains  begin 
to  be  less  copious;  and  sometimes  slight 
tornadoes  appear,  indicative  of  .the  cessation 
of  the  rainy  season.  The  sea-breezes  are 
usually  very  strong,  during  these  two 
months;  and  the  atmosphere  is  generally 
uniformly  cool,  and  invigorating  to  the 
physical  system. 

During    the    month    of   November,    the 


weather  is  generally  very  pleasant,  the 
temperature  of  the  atmosphere  being  agree- 
able to  the  feelings — not  so  cool  as  during 
the  five  preceding  months,  and  not  so  warm 
as  during  the  five  or  six  succeeding  ones, 
the  average  height  of  the  mercury  in  the 
thermometer  being  about  82°.  Frequent 
showers  of  rain  usually  fall  during  this, 
month,  both  in  the  day  and  at  night;  but 
generally  they  are  of  short  duration.  Slight 
tornadoes  also  generally  appear  in  this, 
month.  The  sun  may  usually  be  seen, 
during  a  part  of  every  day  in  the  month; 
and  frequently  he  is  not  obscured  by  clouds ,. 
during  the  whole  of  the  time  in  which  he  is 
above  the  horizon.  The  middle  of  this 
month  may  be  regarded  as  the  beginning 
of  the  dry  season. 

December  is  also  generally  a  very  pleasant 
month.  Occasional  slight  showers  of  rain 
fall  during  this  month,  sometimes  several 
sprinklings  in  one  day,  but  seldom  for 
more  than  a  few  minutes  at  a  time.  The 
mornings  in  this  month  are  peculiarly  de- 
lightful. The  sun  usually  rises  with  bril- 
liancy and  beauty;  and  the  hills  and  groves, 
teeming  with  the  verdure  of  perpetual  spring, 
are  enriched  by  the  mingled  melody  of  a 
thousand  cheerful  songsters.  Nothing  that 
I  have  ever  witnessed  in  the  United  States 
exceeds  the  loveliness  of  a  December  morn- 
ing in  Liberia. 

On  the  whole,  I  regard  the  climate  of  Li- 
beria as  decidedly  pleasant;  notwithstanding 
the  scorching  rays  of  the  tropical  sun,  and 
the  "  abundance  of  rain"  which  falls  during 
the  year,  especially  during  the  months  of 
June,  July,  September  and  October.  So 
far  as  the  pleasantness  of  the  climate  and 
weather  is  concerned,  I  would  decidedly 
prefer  a  residence  in  Liberia,  to  one  in  any 
part  of  the  United  States.. 

The  extremes  of  the  thermometrical  state 
of  the  atmosphere  may  be  set  down  at  65° 
and  900.  I  have  never  heard  of  the  mercury 
in  a  good  thermometer  having  sunk  below 
the  former,  nor  arisen  above  the  latter  point, 


16 


SKETCHES    OP    LIBERIA. 


Productions— Rice— Indian  corn  and  Sweei  potatoes. 


in  the  shade.  The  average  height  of  the 
mercury,  during  the  rainy  season,  may  be 
set  down  at  about  76°,  and,  during  the  dry 
season  at  84°.  The  mean  temperature  for 
the  year  is  about  80°. 

In  regard  to  the  comparative  healthiness 
of  the  two  seasons,  I  may  state,  that  my 
observations  fully  convinced  me,  that  the 
rainy  season  is  decidedly  more  conducive 
to  health  than  the  dry  season,  in  both  new- 
comers and  old  settlers.  The  oppressive- 
ness of  the  atmosphere,  and  the  enervating 
effects  of  the  weather,  during  the  dry  season, 
tend  to  debilitate  the  physical  system,  and 
thereby  to  render  it  more  susceptible  of 
being  affected  by  the  local  agents  of  disease. 
Consequently,  those  persons  who  arrive  in 
Liberia  during  this  season,  are  more  liable 
to  frequent  attacks  of  fever,  than  those  are 
who  arrive  during  the  rainy  season.  In 
reference,  however,  to  the  acclimating  pro- 
cess, I  do  not  think  that  any  great  advan- 
tage can  be  gained  by  arriving  at  any  par- 
ticular time  of  the  year,  more  than  at  any 
other  time.  Unnecessary  exposure  to  the 
heat  of  the  sun  during  the  dry  season,  and 
to  the  rain  during  the  wet  season,  should 
alike  be  avoided.  Care  and  prudence 
should  be  exercised  by  new-comers  at  all 
.times  during  the  year. 

SKETCH— No.  4. 

PROPUCTIONS. — Nearly  all  the  different 
kinds  of  grain,  roots,  and  fruits,  which  are 
peculiar  to  intertropical  climates,  thrive  well 
in  Liberia  ;  and  many  garden  vegetables 
which  belong  more  properly  to  temperate 
climates,  may  be  raised,  in  quality  not 
much  inferior  to  the  same  kind  of  articles, 
produced  in  climates  peculiarly  adapted  to 
itheir  growth  and  maturation. 

The  only  kind  of  grain,  however, 
which  has  yet  been  cultivated  to  any  con- 
siderable extent,  is  Rice,  which  is  the  great 
staple  of  intertropical  Africa,  and  the  prin- 
cipal article  of  food  of  th£  numerous  ab- 
originaj  inhabitants.  It  is  .also  used  exten- 


sively by  the  Liberians.  And  it  is  un- 
doubtedly the  most  wholesome  article  of 
food  which  can  be  used  in  that  country. 
It  is  not  cultivated  very  extensively  by  the 
Liberians,  in  consequence  of  their  being  able 
generally  to  purchase  it  more  cheaply  from 
the  natives,  than  the  cultivation  of  it  would 
cost.  In  consequence,  however,  of  the  in- 
creasing demand,  it  has,  of  late  years, 
commanded  a  better  price  than  formerly  ; 
which  has  induced  some  of  the  citizens  to 
engage  in  raising  it.  Until  within  the  last 
few  years,  scarcely  any  persons  attempted 
to  raise  it;  but,  at  present,  this  valuable  grain 
may  be  seen  growing  in  the  neighborhood 
of  several  of  the  settlements  in  Liberia. 
Although  it  grows  much  better  in  low,  wet 
land  ;  yet  it  thrives  very  well  in  land  more 
elevated  ;  such  as  will  produce  most  other 
articles  usually  cultivated.  It  is  usually 
sowed  in  April,  and  harvested  in  August. 
Sometimes  two  crops  may  be  made  in  one 
year  ;  but  generally  only  one  is  made.  It 
yields  so  abundantly,  that,  notwithstanding 
the  extreme  indolence  of  the  natives,  who 
do  not  work  on  their  farms  during  three 
months  in  the  year,  they  usually  raise 
much  more  than  they  require. 

Indian  corn,  or  maize,  will  grow  very 
well  on  some  lands  in  Liberia ;  and  al- 
though it  does  not  thrive  so  well  as  in 
some  parts  of  the  United  States  ;  yet  I  am 
quite  satisfied  that  it  might  be  cultivated 
much  more  extensively  in  Liberia  than  it 
ever  yet  has  been.  I  have  seen  some  fine, 
large  ears  of  corn,  which  were  raised  on 
the  St.  Paul's  river.  The  small-grained 
corn,  usually  called  Guinea-corn,  no  doubt 
will  grow  well  in  Liberia  (Guinea,  whence 
its  name  ;)  but  strange  to  say,  I  have  seldom 
seen  it  growing  there.  The  natives  in  the 
vicinity  of  the  settlements  seldom,  if  ever, 
raise  it. 

A  variety  of  esculent  roots  may  be  raised 
in  Liberia  ;  the  most  common  of  which  are, 
the  sweet  potato,  cassada,  yam,  and  tania. 

Sweet  potatoes  may  be  raised  in  great 
abundance,  with  very  little  labor,  on  al- 


SKETCHES    OF    LIBERIA. 


17 


Cassada — Yam— Tania — Beans  and  Peas. 


most  every  kind  of  land,  at  any  time 
during  the  year,  I  have  seen  them  grow- 
ing freely  in  the  sandy  soil,  within  fifty 
yards  of  the  ocean.  The  poorest  persons 
may  easily  have  a  sufficiency  of  this  nu- 
tritious vegetable.  Those  raised  in  some 
parts  of  Liberia  are  very  fine.  They  gen- 
erally thrive  better  during  the  rainy  season, 
especially  on  the  high  lands  ;  but  in  some 
places,  they  thrive  very  well  during  the  dry 
season,  especially  on  the  flat  land  bordering 
on  the  rivers  ;  and,  in  many  places,  they 
may  be  gathered  during  every  month  in  the 
year,  from  the  same  piece  of  land . 

The  Cassada  (  as  it  is  usually  called,  but 
perhaps  more  properly  cassava  )  is  a  shrub , 
which  grows  from  four  to  eight  feet  in  height, 
having  several  white,  fleshy  roots,  covered 
•with  a  coui'se)  rough  skin.  The  stem  of 
the  shrub  is  round  and  jointed,  having  nu- 
merous branches,  which  are  furnished  at 
the  upper  part  with  alternate  leaves,  divi- 
ded into  three,  five,  or  seven  acute  lobes* 
The  root,  which  is  the  only  part  that  is 
used,  arrives  at  perfection  in  from  nine  to 
fifteen  months*  The  roots  vary  in  size, 
from  six  to  eighteen  inches  in  length,  and 
from  three  to  eight  inches  in  circumference. 
In  taste,  when  not  cooked,  it  very  much 
resembles  the  taste  of  a  fresh  chesnut. 
This  vegetable  may  be  raised  abundantly, 
on  any  kind  of  soil.  It  is  the  only  vege- 
table, except  rice  which  is  cultivated  to 
any  extent  by  the  natives.  It  is  usually 
prepared  for  use,  by  being  boiled,  after  the 
skin  or  rind  has  been  removed,  or  by 
being  roasted  in  ashes ;  and,  when 
properly  cooked,  it  is  very  palatable  and 
nutritious.  The  tapioco  of  the  shops  is 
the  fecula  of  the  root  of  the  cassada. 

The  Yam  is  a  slender,  herbaceous  vine, 
having  large  tuberous  roots,  sometimes 
nearly  round,  but  generally  elongated,  like 
the  cassada,  but  much  larger.  The  roots 
of  the  yam  are  sometimes  three  feet  long, 
and  weigh  twenty  or  thirty  pounds.  They 
usually  arrive  at  perfection  in  four  or  five 
months;  and  they  yield  very  abundantly. 


The  root  of  the  yam  is  more  farinaceous 
or  mealy,  when  cooked,  than  that  of  the 
cassada — almost  as  much  so  as  the  Irish 
potato.  They  are  more  digestable  than 
the  cassada ;  and  I  think  more  palatable. 
The  yam  is  one  of  the  most  wholesome 
and  nutritious  esculent  roots  of  any  coun- 
try ;  and  it  may  be  produced  in  any  desired 
quantity  in  Liberia. 

Tania  is  a  delicate,  broad -leafed  plant, 
about  two  feet  in  height,  having  a  bulbous 
root,  which,  when  prepared  like  Irish  po- 
tatoes, resembles  those  excellent  vegetables 
very  nearly  in  taste  ;  and  it  is  a  very  whole- 
some and  nutritious  article  of  food.  It 
may  be  raised  easily  and  abundantly. 

There  are  other  esculent  roots,  peculiar 
to  tropical  climates,  which  have  not  yet 
been  introduced ;  but  which,  no  doubt, 
would  thrive  well  in  Liberia.  I  have  al- 
luded particularly  to  those  only  which 
have  been  introduced,  and  which  are  cul- 
tivated there — those  which  I  have  seen  and 
eaten  myself.  And,  in  addition  to  those 
articles  to  which  I  have  alluded,  I  may 
name  a  few  other  garden  vegetables,  which 
I  have  seen  growing  in  Liberia  :  the  most 
common  of  which  are,  lima  or  butter  beans, 
snap  beans,  black-eyed  peas,  cabbage, 
tamatoes  cucumbers,  watermelons,  pump- 
kins, muskmelons,  cantelopes,  beets,  rad- 
ishes, and  carrots. 

Lima  beans  may  kbe  raised  abundantly, 
at  any  time  during  the  year.  In  conse- 
quence of  the  absence  of  frost,  the  vines 
live  and  bear  for  several  years ;  and  as  the 
beans  are  being  continually  reproduced, 
they  may  be  gathered  from  the  same  vines, 
during  every  month  in  the  year,  and  for 
three,  four,  five,  or  more,  successive 
years.  The  vines  yield  in  a  few  months 
after  the  planting  of  the  bean  ;  so  that,  no 
family  ought  ever  to  be  without  this  excel- 
lent vegetable.  They  are  equal  to  those 
raised  in  any  part  of  the  United  States. 

Black-eyed  peas  may  be  raised  in  any 
necessary  quantities.  They  come  to  ma- 
turity in  about  six  weeks  from  the  time  of 


18 


SKETCHES    OF    LIBERIA, 


Cabbages — Tomatoes — Cucumbers — Watermelons,  &c. — Oranges — Limes  and  Pine-apples. 


planting  ;  and  they  may  be  raised  at  any  I 
time  during  the  year. 

Cabbages  do  not  thrive  so  Well  in  Liberia 
as  they  generally  do  in  the  United  States  I 
— that  is,  they  do  not  produce  so  fine  heads.  ] 
They  grow  very  rapidly  ;  and  sometimes  j 
Ihe  stalk  attains  the  height  of  several  feet. 
They  do  not  go  to  seed.     When,  however, 
good  seed   can   be    procured  from  other 
countries,  and  proper  attention  is  given  to 
the  cultivation  of  the  cabbage,  fine,  large, 
lender  heads  may  sometimes  be  produced. 
I  have  occasionally  eaten  as  good  cabbage 
in  Liberia,  as  I  ever  ate  in  the  Old  Domin- 
ion, tx 

Tomatoes  may  be  easily  raised ;  and 
when  the  seed  are  procured  from  abroad, 
the  fruit  is  large  and  well  flavored — equal 
to  the  produce  of  most  other  countries. 

Cucumbers  will  perhaps  thrive  as  well 
in  Liberia,  as  in  most  other  countries.  I 
have  seen  as  fine  cucumbers  there  as  I 
ever  saw  in  any  part  of  the  United  States. 
A  sandy  soil  seems  to  be  best  adapted  for 
them. 

Watermelons  thrive  as  well  in  some  parts 
of  Liberia,  as  in  most  parts  of  the  United 
States  ;  especially  when  good  seed  can  be 
procured  from  abroad.  Some  as  fine 
watermelons  as  I  ever  saw  were  raised  in 
the  vicinity  of  Monrovia.  So  far  as  I  could 
learn,  the  best  time  to  plant  the  seed  is  in 
March  or  April. 

All  the  other  articles  which  I  have  enu- 
merated, and  several  other  garden  vege- 
tables, which  seem  to  belong  more  proper- 
ly to  temperate  climates,  may  be  raised  in 
Liberia  without  much  difficulty,  if  the  seed 
tan  be  obtained  from  those  countries,  to 
which  these  vegetables  seem  to  be  pecu- 
liarly adapted.  Several  of  these  vegetables 
do  not  go  to  seed  at  all  in  Liberia  ;  conse- 
quently, they  cannot  be  reproduced.  And 
I  believe  all  the  rest  which  belong  more 
properly  to  temperate  climates,  soon  de- 
generate so  much  in  quality,  as  to  become 
unfit  for  use.  Hence,  the  necessity  of  im- 
porting seeds,  if  persons  wish  to  have 


American  vegetables  on  African  tables. — 
And  here  I  would  particularly  recommend 
to  persons,  who^  intend  to  emigrate  to  Li- 
beria, to  take  with  them  a  variety  of  gar- 
den seeds.  And,  in  order  to  protect  them 
from  being  injured  by  the  salt  air  of  the 
ocean,  I  would  advise  that  they  should  be 
sealed  up  in  vials  or  bottles  ;  or  wrapped 
in  paper,  and  packed  away  in  saw  dust. 

A  great  variety  of  fruits  is  raised  in 
Liberia;  many  of  which  are  indigenous. 
The  principal  fruits  are>  the  orange,  lime, 
lemon,  pine-apple,  guava,  mango,  plan- 
tain, banana,  okra,  papaw,  cocoanut, 
tamarind,  pomegranate,  granadilla,  Afri- 
can cherry,  African  peach,  soursop,  sweet- 
sop,  sorrel,  cocoa,  rose-apple,  and  chiota. 

The  Orange  tree  thrives  as  well  perhaps, 
and  bears  as  fine  fruit  in  Liberia  as  in  any 
other  part  of  the  world.  The  tree,  when 
full-grown,  is  about  the  size  of  ordinary 
apple  trees  in  the  United  States  ;  but  much 
more  handsome,  One  tree  usually  bears 
as  many  oranges,  as  an  apple  tree  of  the 
same  size  bears  apples.  Although  ripe 
oranges  may  be  procured  at  any  time  of 
the  year  ;  yet,  there  are  two  seasons,  at 
which  they  are  more  plentiful >  than  at 
other  times.  One  season  is  about  the  mid- 
dle of  the  year,  and  the  other  about  the 
close  of  the  year.  It  is  not  uncommon  to 
see  blossoms,  budsr  young  fruit,  and  full- 
grown  fruit,  on  the  same  tree,  at  the  same 
time  ;  so  that  while  some  of  thfe  oranges 
are  ripening,  others  are  being  produced. — 
In  the  town  of  Monrovia,  many  orange 
trees  may  be  seen  adorning  the  sides  of  the 
streets i  as  well  as  in  the  yards  and  gardens 
of  the  citizens. 

Limes  and  lemons  are  in  superabundance, 
in  nearly  every  settlement  in  Liberia. 

Pine-apples  grow  wild  in  the  woods,  in 
great  abundance  ;  and  when  allowed  to  ri- 
pen, before  being  pulled,  they  are  very 
finely  flavored.  *  The  apple  grows  out  of 
the  centre  of  a  small  stalk,  one  or 
two  feet  high ,  and  it  is  surrounded  Jjy 
prickly,  pointed  leaves  or  branches.  I 


SKETCHES    OF   LIBERIA. 


19 


Guavas— Mango— Plantain  and  Banana. 


have  seen  thousands  of  them,  in  half  an 
hour's  walk.  They  are  considerably  im- 
p roved  by  cultivation  in  good,  rich  land. 
They  are  not,  however,  a  wholesome  fruit, 
although  very  palatable ;  and  many  per- 
sons have  made  themselves  sick  by  eating 
them  too  freely. 

Guavas  grow  very  abundantly,  on  trees 
about  the  size  of  ordinary  peach  trees. 
This  fruit  resembles  the  apricot  in  appear- 
ance, but  not  in  taste.  It  is  not  very  pal- 
atable, when  uncooked  ;  though  some 
persons  are  very  fond  of  it.  It,  however, 
makes  the  best  preserves,  and  the  best 
pies,  of  any  fruit  with  which  I  am  acquain- 
ted. The  guava  jelly,  which  is  almost 
universally  regarded  as  a  very  delicious 
article,  is  made  from  this  fruit.  Though 
1  believe  the  guava  tree  is  not  indigenous  to 
Liberia  ;  yet  it  grows  so  luxuriantly,  as  to 
become  a  source  of  much  inconvenience, 
in  some  places. 

The  Mango  (or  mango-plum,  as  it  is 
usually  called  in  Liberia)  also  thrives  well. 
It  is  the  product  of  a  handsome  tree,  about 
the  size  of  an  ordinary  apple-tree.  The 
fruit  is  about  the  size  of  an  ordinary  apple, 
but  oval,  or  egg-shaped.  In  taste,  it  ap- 
proaches more  nearly  to  the  American 
peach,  than  any  other  tropical  fruit  I  ever 
ate  ;  and  I  regard  it  as  the  best  fruit  which 
is  raised  in  Liberia.  The  mango  makes 
very  superior  preserves. 

The  Plantain  is  a  beautiful,  broad-leafed, 
tender,  fibrous  stalk,  which  grows  to  the 
height  of  from  eight  to  fourteen  feet.  The 
leaves ,  which  are  the  continuation  of  the 
fibrous  layers  of  the  soft,  herbaceous 
stalk,  are  generally  about  six  feet  long, 
and  from  one  to  three  feet  broad.  The 
fruit-stem  proceeds  from  the  heart  of  the 
stalk  ;  and,  when  full-grown,  it  is  about 
three  feet  long,  and  beautifully  curved,  ex- 
tending about  two  feet  beyond  the  cluster 
of  fruit,  and  terminating  in  a  singular  and 
beautiful  purple  bulb,  formed  of  numerous 
tender  layers,  which  can  be  easily  separ- 
ated. One  stalk  produces  only  one  cluster 


or  bunch  of  fruit;  and,  when  this  is  re- 
moved, by  cutting  the  stem,  the  stalk  dies  ; 
but  cions  spring  up  from  the  original  root, 
around  the  old  stalk  ;  and  in  a  few  months, 
these  also  bear  fruit ;  and  then  die,  giving 
place  to  other  new  stalks.  So  that,  in  two 
or  three  years  frorn  the  time  of  the  first 
planting,  the  number  of  stalks  and  bunches 
of  fruit  will  be  increased  six-fold,  or  more. 
The  venerable  parent-stalk,  as  if  loth  to 
leave  her  rising  progeny  unsheltered  from 
the  sweeping  tornado,  generally  continues 
to  spread  her  broad  leaves  over  them,  un- 
til they  shall  have  attained  a  sufficient 
size  to  stand  firmly  before  the  destroying 
blast  of  the  stornvking ;  and  then  one  by 
one,  the  expansive  leaves  or  branches 
wither,  and  fall  to  the  ground,  leaving  the 
aged,  worn-out  stalk  to  be  prostrated  by 
the  passing  breeze.  The  fruit  of  the 
plantain  is  cylindrical  and  slightly  curved, 
somewhat  tapering  towards  the  end.  It  is 
usually  from  six  to  nine  inches  long,  and 
about  one  inch  in  diameter.  At  first, 
it  is  of  a  pale  green  color  ;  but,  when  ful- 
ly ripe,  it  is  yellow.  It  arrives  at  maturi- 
ty in  about  eight  months.  Most  persons 
in  Liberia  cut  the  bunches  before  the  fruit 
has  ripened  ;  but,  it  is  much  better,  when 
it  is  allowed  to  ripen  before  being  separated 
from  the  stalk.  It  is  usually  prepared  for 
the  table,  by  being  boiled,  baked,  or  fried  ; 
and  it  is  perhaps  the  most  luscious  and 
wholesome  vegetable  of  tropical  climates, 
and  one  of  the  most  valuable  fruits  in  the 
vegetable  kingdom.  It  may  be  produced 
at  any  time  in  the  year  ;  and,  with  a  little 
judicious  management,  every  family  may 
have  this  excellent  and  nutritious  article, 
every  day  in  the  year. 

The  Banana  is  so  much  like  th  e  plantain ,  in 
every  respect,  except  in  the  taste,  and  a 
slight  difference  in  the  appearance  of  the 
fruit,  that  the  description  of  one  will  answer 
for  both.  Indeed,  it  is  difficult  to  distin- 
guish one  from  the  other,  when  they  are 
growing.  The  fruit  of  the  banana  is  only 
about  half  the  length  of  the  plantain  ;  and 


SKETCHES    OF    LIBERIA. 


Okra — Papaw — Cocoanut— Tamarind— Pomcgranite  and  African  Cherry. 


is  not  so  much  curved.  It  is  also  much 
softer,  when  ripe,  ami  is  more  frequently 
eaten  uncooked  ;  although  it  may  be  pre- 
pared in  the  same  manner  as  the  plantain. 
The  taste  of  the  plantain  very  much  -resem- 
bles the  taste  of  apples  cooked  in  the  same 
way  ;  while  that  of  the  banana  is  sut  gen- 
tris — unlike  any  fruit  of  the  United  States. 
The  plantain  and  banana  trees  are  among 
the  most  beautiful  vegetable  growths  of 
tropical  climates. 

Okra  is  the  fruit  of  a  small  tree,  ten  or 
twelve  feet  high.  It  is  a  soft,  pulpy,  and 
very  mucilagenous  fruit ;  which,  when 
boiled,  forms  a  thick,  semi-fluid,  pleasant, 
and  nutritious  article  of  food — an  excellent 
adjuvant  to  rice.  It  may  be  raised  easily 
and  abundantly  in  Liberia. 

The  Papaw  is  a  tall,  slender,  herbaceous 
tree,  of  very  rapid  growth,  sometimes  at- 
taining the  height  of  thirty  feet.  The 
body  of  the  tree  is  usually  naked  to  with- 
in two  or  three  feet  of  the  top,  and  is 
marked  with  the  cicatrices  of  the  fallen 
leaves,  which  wither  and  fall  as  the  tree 
continues  to  grow,  giving  place  to  others 
above  them.  Sometimes,  however,  there 
are  several  branches  attached  to  the  upper 
part  of  the  body  of  the  tree ;  each  of  which 
branches  produces  a  cluster  of  fruit.  The 
leaves  are  very  large,  have  long  footstalks, 
and  are  divided  into  numerous  lobes. — 
The  fruit  is  nearly  round,  of  a  pale-green 
color,  becoming  yellowish  as  it  ripens,  and 
is  about  the  size  of  the  head  of  a  very 
young  infant.  One  variety  of  the  papaW, 
however,  bears  fruit  of  an  elongated  shape 
somewhat  like  a  pear  ;  but  considerably 
larger  than  the  other  variety.  The  fruit 
of  the  papaw  has  a  sweetish  taste.  It  is 
very  soft ;  and,  when  fully  ripe,  and  stewed, 
it  resembles  in  both  appearance  and  taste 
the  best  pumpkins  of  the  United  States  ; — 
when  it  is  stewed,  before  it  has  ripened, 
and  is  made  into  pie,  it  so  much  resembles 
the  green -apple  pie,  in  taste  as  well  as  ap- 
pearance, that  the  most  fastidious  epicure 


might  be  deceived  by  it ;  if  he  did  not  stop 
to  think  that  apples  do  not  grow  in  Liberia. 

The  Cocoanut  is  perhaps  the  most 
beautiful  tree  of  tropical  climates.  It  has 
long,  curved  leaves  or  branches  ;  which 
hang  gracefully  from  the  upper  part  of  the 
body,  which  rises  sometimes  to  the  height 
of  thirty  feet,  or  more.  The  fruit  grows  in 
clusters  near  the  base  of  the  stalks  of  the 
leaves.  The  cocoanut  tree  is  seldom  raised 
in  Liberia,  except  as  an  ornament.  A  few 
of  these  stately  arid  beautiful  trees  may  be 
seen  in  some  of  the  settlements.  From 
having  seen  it  growing  in  an  obscure  place , 
I  presume  the  cocoanut  tree  is  indigenous 
in  Liberia. 

The  Tamarind  is  a  large,  spreading  tree, 
having  very  small,  deep-green  leaves. — 
The  fruit  grows  in  elongated  pods}  similar 
to  the  butter-bean.  Although  the  tamarind 
is  indigenous,  and  thrives  as  well  perhaps  in 
Liberia,  as  in  any  other  part  of  the  world  ; 
yet  the  people  do  not  give  any  attention  to 
the  gathering  of  the  fruit,  except  for  their 
own  use  ;  and,  indeed,  very  few  seem  to 
care  any  thing  about  it.  I  think,  however, 
it  may  be  made  a  profitable  article  of  ex- 
portation. 

The  Pomegranite  is  a  dense,  spiny  shrub, 
ten  or  twelve  feet  high.  It  produces 
beautiful  brilliant  large  red  flowers  ;  and 
the  fruit  is  about  the  size  of  a  large  apple, 
and  covered  with  a  thick  coriaceous  rind. 
It  is  filled  with  a  multitude  of  small  seeds  ; 
and  the  pulp  is  slightly  acid  and  astringent. 
This  fruit  is  seldom  cultivated  in  Liberia  ; 
although  I  presume  it  will  thrive  as  well 
as  in  most  other  parts  of  the  world. 

The  African  cherry  (so  called  in  Liberia) 
is  a  very  peculiar  fruit.  It  is  about  the 
size  of  the  ordinary  morrello-cherry  of  the 
United  States  ;  but,  in  taste,  it  more  re- 
sembles the  cranberry.  The  tree  is  usually 
about  fifteen  feet  high.  The  great  pecu- 
liarity in  the  growth  of  this  fruit,  consists 
in  the  manner  in  which  the  short  stems  are 
attached  to  the  tree— not  to  the  twigs  of 
the  branches,  but  to  the  body  and  larger 


SKETCHES    OF   LIBERIA. 


•21 


African  Peach— Sour-sop— Sweet-sop,  &c.— Productions  continued— Coffee. 


limbs  of  the  tree  ;  the  stems  of  the  fruit 
being  about  one-third  of  an  inch  long. — 
This  fruit  makes  very  fine  tarts — equal  to 
the  cranberry. 

The  African  peach,  of  which  there  are 
three  varieties,  is  a  large,  round,  acid  fruit 
—one  variety  being  about  twice  the  size  of 
the  largest  peaches  in  the  United  States. 
These  trees,  some  of  which  are  very  large, 
grow  abundantly  in  the  forests  of  Liberia. 
The  fruit  is  used  only  for  making  pre- 
serves ;  which,  when  properly  made,  are 
surpassed  only  by  the  guava. 

The  Sour-sop  is  a  large,  pulpy,  acidu- 
lous fruit,  which  grows  on  a  tree  about  the 
size  of  fin  ordinary  apple-tree.  The  fruit 
is  nearly  pear-shaped,  and  is  about  as 
large  as  an  ordinary  cantelope.  It  is 
covered  with  a  thick,  knotty  rind.  When 
perfectly  ripe,  it  is  a  very  pleasant  fruit ; 
especially  when  a  little  sugar  is  sprinkled 
over  the  pulp.  It  is  also  very  good,  when 
fried  in  slices  ;  in  which  state  it  somewhat 
resembles  in  taste  fried  sour  apples. 

The  Sweet-sop  is  a  fruit  somewhat  simi- 
lar to  the  sour-sop;  but  not  so  acidulous,  nor 
so  pleasant  to  the  taste.  It  is  seldom  used. 

The  Cocoa,  from  which  chocolate  is 
produced,  though  not  yet  extensively  cul- 
tivated, thrives  well  in  Liberia. 

The  Rose-apple  is  a  small  round  fruit, 
which  takes  its  name  from  the  delightful 
fragrance  which  it  has.  It  is  not  very  pal- 
atable, however  ;  and  it  is  seldom  eaten. 

The  Granadilla  is  a  large  fruit  which 
grows  on  a  vine.  It  is  about  as  large  as 
a  moderate  sized  cantelope.  No  part  of 
the  fruit  is  eaten,  except  the  seeds  and  the 
mucilagenous  substance  by  which  they  are 
surrounded.  These  are  loosely  confined  in 
the  centre  of  the  fruit.  The  taste  of  this 
mucilage  resembles  the  American  straw- 
berry more  than  any  other  fruit  with  which 
I  am  acquainted. 

The  Sorrel  is  a  large  shrub,  having  deep- 
red  blossoms  ;  which  are  often  used  for 
making  tarts.  It  grows  freely  in  Liberia, 

2 


and  it  is  a  very  handsome  ornament  to   a 
yard  or  garden. 

The  Chiota  is  the  fruit  of  a  vine;  It  is 
about  as  large  as  an  ordinary  pear.  When 
properly  prepared,  by  stewing,  it  aflfords  a 
wholesome,  palatable,  and  nutritious  article 
of  food  ;  and  it  may  be  easily  raised  in 
Liberia. 

The  celebrated  bread  fruit,  of  the  island 
of  Tahiti,  which  was  introduced  into  the 
British  West-India  Islands,  by  order  of 
the  government,  will  grow  well  in  Liberia. 
But,  as  there  are  so  many  other  articles  of  a 
somewhat  similar  kind,  which  are  prefer- 
able to  it,  it  is  seldom  used. 

I  have  seen  several  other  indigenous  fruits 
in  Liberia  ;  some  of  which  are  very  palata- 
ble; some  very  fragrant,  but  not  very  accep- 
table to  the  palate  ;  and  others  not  possess- 
ing any  good  qualities  to  recommend  them 
And  there  are  many  other  kinds  of  fruits, 
peculiar  to  tropical  climates,  which,  no 
doubt,  would  thrive  well  in  Liberia ;  but 
which  have  not  yet  been  introduced.  I 
have  alluded  to  those  only  which  I  have 
seen  growing  there,  and  of  which  I  have 
eaten. 

SKETCH— No.  5 

PRODUCTIONS — Continued. — In  addition 
to  the  vegetable  productions  of  Liberia, 
to  which  I  have  alluded,  there  are  some 
others  which  are  worthy  of  particular 
notice  ;  especially  as  they  are  the  prin- 
cipal exportable  articles,  some  of  which, 
may  be  rendered  very  profitable  articles  of 
commerce.  These  are,  Coffee,  Ginger,  Pep- 
per, Sugar,  Ground-nuts,  Indigo,  Cotton, 
and  Arrow-root. 

In  reference  to  Coffee,  I  am  quite  satisfied 
that  the  soil  and  climate  of  Liberia  are  as 
well  adapted  to  the  cultivation  of  this  arti- 
cle, as  the  soil  and  climate  of  any  other  part 
of  the  world.  I  believe  that  as  good  coffee 
can  be  raised  in  Liberia  as  in  Mocha  or 
Java  ;  and  I  have  no  doubt  that,  by  proper 
attention,  it  may  be  raised  as  plentifully  as 
in  any  other  part  of  the  world.  These 


SKETCHES    OF    LIBERIA. 


Estimates  of  the  quantity  and  value  of  coffee. 


opinions  are  not  hastily  formed,  but  are 
founded  on  personal  observations  in  some 
of  the  West  India  Islands,  as  well  as  in  Li- 
beria, and  on  frequent  conversations  with 
persons  who  have  visited  various  other  parts 
of  the  world  in  which  coffee  is  cultivated. 
I  have  frequently  seen  isolated  trees  grow- 
ing in  different  parts  of  Liberia,  which  have 
yielded  from  ten  to  twenty  pounds  of  clean 
dry  coffee  at  one  picking;  and,  however 
incredible  it  may  appear,  it  is  a  fact,  that 
one  tree  in  Monrovia  yielded  four  and  a 
--phalf  bushels  of  coffee,  in  the  hull,  at  one 
time;  which,  on  being  shelled  and  dried, 
weighed  thirty-one  pounds.  This  is  the 
largest  quantity  of  which  I  ever  heard,  as 
having  been  gathered  from  one  tree  ;  and 
it  is  the  largest  coffee  tree  I  ever  saw,  being 
upwards  of  twenty  feet  high,  and  of  propor- 
tionate dimensions. 

I  have  given  particular  attention  to  obser- 
vations and  investigations,  respecting  the 
cultivation  of  coffee  in  Liberia;  and,  I 
think  I  may  safely  set  down  the  average 
quantity  which  may  be  raised,  by  proper 
cultivation,  at  four  pounds  to  each  tree — 
that  is,  each  tree  of  six  years  old  and  up- 
wards. The  coffee  tree  will  begin  to  bear 
in  three  years  from  the  time  at  which  the 
seeds  are  planted.  At  the  end  of  the  fourth 
year,  the  average  quantity  may  be  set  down 
at  one  pound  to  each  tree ;  at  the  end  of 
the  fifth  year,  two  and  a  half  pounds  ;  and, 
at  the  end  of  the  sixth  year,  four  pounds. 
About  three  hundred  trees  can  be  planted 
in  one  acre  of  ground,  allowing  the  trees  to 
be  twelve  feet  apart.  Therefore,  in  four 
years  from  the  time  the  seeds  are  planted 
in  the  nursery,  300  pounds  of  coffee  may 
be  gathered,  which,  at  ten  cents  a  pound,  (a 
very  moderate  rate  for  Liberia  coffee,  which 
has  frequently  been  sold  for  twenty  cents 
a  pound  in  this  country,)  would  be  worth 
$30.  At  the  end  of  the  fifth  year,  750 


pounds  may  be  gathered — worth  $75  ;  and 
at  the  end  of  the  sixth  year,  1,200  pounds — 
worth  $120.  So  that,  in  six  years  from  the 
time  of  the  planting  of  the  seeds,  agreeably 
to  this  calculation,  2,250  pounds  of  coffee 
may  be  produced  on  one  acre  of  ground — 
worth  $225.  And,  accordingly,  ten  acres, 
properly  cultivated,  will  yield  during  the 
first  six  years,  an  income  of  $2,250  ;  and 
at  least  $1,200  during  each  succeeding 
year. 

This  calculation  I  regard  as  pretty  nearly 
correct ;  but  even  admitting  that  I  have  set 
down  the  quantities  and  the  value  at  one 
fourth  more  than  they  should  be,  it  will 
still  appear,  that  the  cultivation  of  coffee 
may  be  rendered  a  source  of  wealth  in  Li- 
beria, even  supposing  that  nothing  else 
could  be  raised  for  exportation,  which  is 
by  no  means  the  case.  I  am  quite  satisfied 
that  at  least  $100  a  year  may  be  realized, 
by  proper  management,  from  the  produce 
of  one  acre  of  ground  cultivated  in  coffee, 
after  the  sixth  year  from  the  time  of  plant- 
ing of  the  grains  in  the  nursery.  And,  as 
it  does  not  require  much  labor,  one  person 
may  easily  cultivate  three  acres,  with  a 
little  hired  assistance  in  clearing  the  land, 
and  may  devote  one  half  of  his  time,  or 
more,  to  the  cultivation  of  other  articles, 
for  the  use  of  himself  and  family,  and  for 
sale  ;  and  he  need  not  work  more  than  five 
or  six  hours  a  day.  So  that,  by  industry, 
prudence,  and  economy,  any  man  may 
realize  at  least  $300  a  year  for  his  labor, 
over  and  above  the  necessary  expenditures 
of  himself  and  family ;  the  other  articles 
which  he  may  raise  being  quite  sufficient 
for  the  comfortable  support  of  his  house- 
hold. I  am  aware  that  the  truthfulness  of 
this  statement  has  seldom  been  exhibited  in 
the  agricultural  operations  of  the  citizens  of 
Liberia  ;  but  this  fact  does  not  necessarily 
confute  the  truth  of  the  statement,  nor  does 


SKETCHES    OF    LIBERIA. 


Method  of  raising  coffee — Ginger — Pepper. 


it  sufficiently  exhibit  the  impracticability  of 
its  being  fully  and  easily  carried  out.  And 
I  might  add,  that  it  does  not  require  the 
exercise  of  profound  wisdom,  even  in  a  cur- 
sory observer,  to  discover  the  real  cause 
why  the  feasibility  of  the  result  of  the  fore- 
going calculation  is  not  more  frequently  ex- 
hibited. 

Coffee  is  indigenous  in  Liberia.  It  may 
frequently  be  seen  wild  in  the  woods.  It 
is,  however,  much  improved  by  cultivation. 
The  most  approved  method  of  raising  it,  is 
to  plant  the  grains  in  a  nursery,  and  to 
transplant  when  the  tree  has  attained  the 
height  of  a  foot  and  a  half.  Some  trees 
arrive  at  their  full  growth  in  five  or  six 
years  ;  while  others  continue  to  grow  more 
than  double  that  length  of  time.  The  grains 
grow  in  pairs,  covered  with  a  hull,  from 
which  they  can  be  easily  separated  when 
dry.  The  coffee  blossom  is  a  beautiful  and 
highly  flagrant  little  white  flower,  and  the 
berry,  when  fully  ripe,  is  of  a  pale  red 
color.  The  average  height  of  full  grown 
trees  is  about  eight  feet.  They  continue  to 
bear  from  ten  to  twenty  years.  I  have  seen 
some  fine  flourishing  trees,  which  were  up- 
wards of  twenty  years  old.  As  the  coffee 
tree  is  easily  cultivated,  and  as  the  fruit  is 
easily  cured,  the  cultivation  of  this  profita- 
ble and  useful  article  should  occupy  a  por- 
tion of  the  time  of  every  family  in  Liberia. 

Next  to  coffee,  perhaps  Ginger  may  be 
made  the  most  profitable  article  of  culture, 
for  exportation.  The  superior  quality  of 
this  article,  and  the  peculiar  adaptation  of 
almost  every  kind  of  soil  in  Liberia,  to  its 
abundant  growth,  justifies  the  opinion  that 
it  may  be  rendered  a  very  profitable  article 
of  commerce.  It  will  certainly  grow  as 
well  in  Liberia  as  in  any  other  part  of  the 
world ;  and.  in  quality,  it  is  scarcely  infe- 
rior to  the  best  that  is  produced  in  any 
other  country.  I  have  no  certain  data  from 
which  I  can  determine  the  average  quantity 


of  ginger  which  may  be  raised  on  a  given 
quantity  of  land  ;  but,  from  what  I  have 
seen,  I  am  quite  satisfied  that  it  may  be 
raised  in  great  abundance,  with  very  little 
labor.  The  average  increase  is  at  least 
twenty-fold,  when  properly  cultivated. 
From  six  to  eight  months  is  the  time  usu- 
ally required  for  its  growth  and  maturation. 
Bird  pepper,  which  is  known  in  the 
United  States  as  "African  Cayenne  Pep- 
per," is  an  indigenous  article,  which  may 
be  found  almost  every  where  throughout 
Liberia.  I  have  frequently  seen  great  quan- 
tities of  it  growing  wild  in  the  woods.  And 
if  a  little  attention  were  given  to  the  cultiva- 
tion of  it,  thousands  of  pounds  might  be 
annually  exported.  It  grows  on  bushes 
about  four  feet  high.  The  pods  are  gene- 
rally about  half  an  inch  long,  and  one  third 
of  an  inch  in  circumference.  One  species, 
however,  is  four  or  five  times  this  size. 
The  smaller  kind  is  generally  prefered.  In 
quality,  it  is  perhaps  not  equalled  by  that 
raised  in  any  other  country.  The  cultiva- 
tion of  it  requires  scarcely  any  attention  ; 
and  the  only  preparation  of  it  for  the  market, 
consists  in  picking  the  pods  and  spreading 
them  out  to  dry.  The  shrub  grows  very 
rapidly,  and  the  fruit  arrives  at  maturity  in 
six  or  eight  months  from  the  time  of  plant- 
ing. It  yields  more  abundantly  about  the 
beginning  of  the  year,  but  as  the  fruit  con- 
tinues to  be  reproduced  throughout  the 
year,  it  may  be  collected  at  any  time.  The 
natives  use  it  very  freely.  It  is  not  un- 
common to  see  them  with  a  bunch  of  pep- 
per in  one  hand  and  a  roasted  cassada  in 
the  other,  taking,  with  each  bite  of  the 
latter,  one  of  the  pods  of  the  former,  one  of 
which  pods  would  serve  to  pepper  a  full 
meal  for  a  person  not  so  accustomed  to  its 
use.  Perhaps  the  reader  of  this  may  won- 
der why  pepper  is  not  more  freely  gather- 
ed and  exported,  as  it  grows  so  abundantly 
in  the  wild  state,  and  as  it  may  be  so  very 


SKETCHES    OP    LIBERIA. 


Sugar-cane — Ground-nuts — Indigo — Cotton. 


easily  cultivated.     To  this  I  can  only  re- 
spond, echo  answers,  why? 

Sugar-cam  will,  perhaps,  thrive  as  well  in 
Liberia,  as  in  any  other  country.  I  have 
seen  stalks  more  than  fifteen  feet  high,  and 
two  or  three  inches  in  diameter.  The  ave- 
rage size  of  the  stalks  is  considerably  larger 
than  those  which  are  raised  in  the  island  of 
Barbadoes,  and  the  juice  is  equally  sweet, 
and  proportionably  more  abundant.  This 
I  have  tested,  by  personal  observations. 
Sugar,  however,  probably  will  not  soon  be- 
come a  profitable  article  of  exportation,  in 
consequence  of  the  inability  of  the  Liberians 
to  compete  with  the  West  India  planters. 
Liberia,  however,  may  be,  and  it  ought  to 
be,  independent  of  all  the  rest  of  the  world, 
for  this  luxury.  Every  farmer  ought  to 
raise,  not  only  enough  of  this  article  for  the 
use  of  his  own  family,  but  some  to  dispose 
of  to  his  mercantile,  mechanical,  and  pro- 
fessional neighbors.  And,  even  if  he  can- 
not conveniently  manufacture  the  sugar,  in 
any  considerable  quantity,  he  can  certainly 
express  enough  of  the  juice  in  a  few  hours, 
with  his  own  hands,  in  a  mill  of  his  own 
construction,  to  make  several  gallons  of 
syrup,  (not  molasses  but  a  much  better  ar- 
ticle,) which  answers  very  well  for  every 
practical  or  necessary  purpose. 

Ground-nuts,  or  pea-nuts,  may  be  raised 
in  great  abundance,  in  Liberia.  And,  as 
these  nuts  generally  find  a  ready  market'in 
the  United  States,  and  in  Europe ;  they 
certainly  will  richly  repay  the  Liberian  far- 
mer for  the  little  trouble  and  labor  which 
their  cultivation  requires.  I  do  not  know 
what  quantity  may  be  raised  on  a  given 
portion  of  land,  but  I  do  know  that  they 
yield  very  abundantly. 

Although  the  cultivation  of  Indigo  has 
not  met  with  much  attention  in  Liberia — 
comparatively  few  persons  having  given 
any  attention  at  all  to  it — yet,  as  the  indigo 


olant  grows  so  luxuriantly,  and  may  be 
•aised  so  easily,  the  manufacture  of  indigo 
s  certainly  worthy  of  particular  notice. 
The  plant  grows  so  abundantly  in  Liberia, 
that  it  constitutes  one  of  the  most  trouble- 
some weeds  in  the  gardens,  and  even  in 
the  streets  of  the  settlements.  And,  with  a 
little  skill  and  industry,  in  preparing  the 
indigo,  it  may  be  rendered  one  of  the  most 
profitable  crops  that  can  be  produced  in 
tropical  climates.  The  plant  arrives  at  ma- 
turity in  three  or  four  months  from  the  time 
of  planting  the  seed,  and  as  it  springs 
up  again,  in  a  few  weeks  after  having  been 
cut,  one  crop  will  yield  five  or  six  cuttings 
in  the  course  of  the  year.  Several  varieties 
of  the  indigo  plant  may  be  found  growing 
wild  in  Liberia,  all  of  which  yield  very  fine 
indigo,  some  of  which  is  perhaps  equal  to 
that  produced  in  any  other  part  of  the  world. 
The  preparation  of  indigo  requires  a  little 
more  patience  and  industry,  than  the  Li- 
berians generally  are  in  the  habit  of  bestow- 
ing on  any  one  article  of  agriculture;  which  is 
the  principal  cause  why  it  has  not  been 
more  extensively  manufactured. 

Cotton  has  not  yet  been  cultivated  to  a 
sufficient  extent,  to  enable  me  to  determine 
from  observation,  whether  it  may  be  made  a 
very  profitable  article  of  agriculture.  Sever 
ral  old  cotton  planters,  who  had  grown 
grey  in  raising  cotton  in  Georgia,  Missis- 
sippi, and  other  Southern  States,  before 
they  went  to  Liberia,  have  repeatedly  told 
me,  that  the  cotton-tree  or  shrub  will  grow 
as  well,  and  yield  as  abundantly  in  Liberia, 
as  in  any  part  of  the  United  States.  As  I 
have  never  seen  the  cotton-tree  growing  in 
the  United  States,  I  cannot  institute  a  com- 
parison, from  my  own  observations.  But 
I  have  seen  some  fine  trees  growing  in  Li- 
beria, and  yielding  cotton  equal  in  quality 
to  the  best  I  ever  saw  from  the  valley  of  the 
Mississippi,  The  natives  in  the  interior 


SKETCHES    OF    L I B E H 1  A  . 


Arrow-root— method  of  preparing  it— quantity  that  may  be  raised. 


manufacture  cotton  goods  pretty  extensive 
ly  from  one  species  of  the  indigenou 
growth.  There  are  several  species  or  vari 
eties  of  cotton  in  Liberia.  The  best  grow 
on  trees  or  shrubs  ten  or  twelve  feet  high — 
similar  to  those  raised  in  the  United  States 
but  perhaps  larger  in  the  average  size 
And,  as  the  trees  are  not  injured  by  frosts 
of  course  they  continue  to  bear  for  severa 
years.  One  species  grows  on  trees  of  im 
mense  dimensions — some  of  them  being 
more  than  twenty  feet  in  circumference 
The  cotton,  however,  which  is  producec 
by  those  large  trees,  is  very  different  from 
that  raised  on  the  small  trees.  It  has  a 
yellowish  cast ;  and  it  is  more  like  raw  silk 
in  appearance  and  texture  ;  but,  as  it  has 
very  little  staple,  it  is  seldom  gathered  for 
any  purpose. 

Jlrrow-root  probably  thrives  as  well  in 
Liberia,  as  in  any  other  part  of  the  world. 
This  is  a  tender  plant,  which  usually  grows 
to  the  height  of  two  or  three  feet.  The 
stems,  of  which  several  rise  from  the  same 
root,  are  round,  branched,  jointed,  and 
leafy.  The  leaves  resemble  the  common 
sword-grass.  They  are  alternate  ;  and  are 
from  three  to  six  inches  in  length.  The  root, 
which  is  the  only  part  used,  is  beautifully 
cylindrical,  straight,  and  tapering,  (hence 
the  name  of  the  plant,)  fleshy,  scaly,  and 
furnished  with  numerous  long,  white  fibres  ; 
and  is  usually  from  three  to  eight  inches  in 
length.  This  plant  is  one  of  the  most 
luxurious  growths  in  Liberia.  It  is  easily 
propagated,  and  it  arrives  at  maturity  in 
about  five  months.  In  preparing  it  for  use, 
the  roots  are  washed,  and  then  beat  into  a 
pulp,  which  is  thrown  into  a  tub  of  water, 
and  agitated,  so  as  to  separate  the  fibres 
from  the  amylaceous  part;  the  latter  of 
which  remains  suspended  in  the  water, 
while  the  former  is  removed.  The  milky 
fluid,  thus  formed,  is  strained,  and  allowed 


to  stand  several  hours,  until  the  fecula,  or 
starch,  shall  have  settled  at  the  bottom  of 
the  vessel.  It  is  then  washed  with  a  fresh 
portion  of  water,  strained  again,  and  allow- 
ed to  subside  again  ;  this  process  sometimes 
being  performed  three  or  four  times  ;  after 
which,  it  is  spread  out,  and  dried  in  the  sun. 
About  eight  pounds  of  the  pure  powder  or 
flour  may  be  procured  from  a  bushel  of  the 
roots. 

As    arrow-root   may    be    produced    so 
abundantly  in  Liberia  ;  and  as  it  is  one  of 
the  most  important  exportable  articles  ;  as 
well  as  one  of  the  most  valuable  articles  of 
food  ;  it   deserves  particular  notice.     The 
cultivation  of  the  plant  requires  so  little  la- 
bor or  attention,  and  the  process  of  manu- 
facturing the  fecula  from  the  roots    is  so 
very  simple  and  so  easily  performed   that 
I  am  quite  certain  this  article  may  be  ren- 
dered a   source  of  wealth  by  exportation. 
From  having  frequently  seen  it  growing, 
and  having  seen  the  quantity  which  a  very 
small  piece  of  ground  produced,   I   think 
the  average  quantity  which  may  be  raised, 
on  almost  every  kind  of  soil  in  Liberia, 
may  be  safely  and  truly  set  down  at  one- 
hundred  bushels  to  the  acre  ;  that  is,  eight 
hundred    pounds    of   pure    manufactured 
arrow-root,  or  fecula.     An  old  gentleman 
at  Monrovia,  who  has  raised  a  considera- 
ble quantity  of  it,  stated  to  me,  that,  from 
he  quantity  which  he  has  made  from   a 
certain  portion  of  land ,  he  was  quite  satis- 
fied that  one  acre,  properly  cultivated,  will 
ield  two  thousand  pounds.    And  a  farmer 
at  Caldwell  assured  me  that  he  made  one 
undred  and  thirty  pounds  from  the  pro- 
duce of  one-sixteenth  of  an  acre  of  ground. 
But,  as  it  will  be  perceived,  I  have  placed 
he  average  quantity  at  less  than  one-half 
)f  the  proportionate  quantity   which   has 
actually  been  raised  ;  and  this,  I  think,  is- 
wt  beyond  a  fair  estimate.      Assuming 


26 


SKETCHES    OF   LIBERIA. 


Arrow-root — a  substitute  for  flour — Productions  continued. 


therefore,  that  one-half  an  acre  will  pro- 
duce four  hundred  pounds,  (a  quantity 
which  almost  any  family  may  easily  raise 
and  manufacture,)  and  allowing  the  aver- 
age net  price  to  be  only  fifteen  cents  a 
pound  ;  it  will  appear  that  $60  may  be  re- 
alized from  this  small  quantity  of  land  ; 
with  comparatively  little  labor. 

During  the  last  year  or  two  arrow-root 
has  been  used  pretty  extensively  in  Liberia, 
as  a  substitute  for  wheat-flour ;  and,  as  I 
have  frequently  eaten  it,  in  various  forms 
of  bread,  I  hesitate  not  to  say,  that  I  be- 
lieve it  to  be  not  only  a  good  substitute  for 
flour,  but  much  more  suitable  and  whole- 
some for  persons  residing  in  tropical  cli- 
mates. It  makes  very  fine  biscuits,  either 
alone  or  when  mixed  with  a  small  quantity 
of  sweet  potatoes.  It  also  makes  very 
good  pie-crust ;  and  I  have  seen  light  or 
leavened  bread ,  made  of  arrow-root,  which 
so  much  resembled  wheat-flour  bread,  in 
both  appearance  and  taste,  as  to  deceive 
professed  judges.  Besides  these,  I  have 
eaten  the  nicest  kind  of  pound  and  other 
sweet  cakes,  made  of  this  article,  instead 
of  flour,  with  the  ordinary  adjuvants.  And 
I  beg  leave  to  say,  that  I  regard  myself  as 
a  tolerably  good  judge  of  good  eating. 

The  foregoing  named  articles  constitute 
the  principal  exportable  articles  of  agricul- 
ture, which  may  be  raised  in  Liberia. 
And  I  have  endeavored  to  give  faithful  and 
truthful  statements,  in  reference  to  each  of 
them.  And,  while  I  regret  that  greater  at- 
tention has  not  yet  been  given  to  the  culti- 
vation of  these  articles  ;  I  cherish  the  hope 
that  the  period  will  arrive,  at  which  all  of 
them  will  be  cultivated  extensively;  if  not 
by  the  present  inhabitants,  by  others  who 
may  emigrate  thither,  having  more  energy, 
industry,  and  perseverance.  I  candidly 
believe,  that  a  man  may  acquire  more 
wealth  in  Liberia,  by  judicious  manage- 


ment in  the  cultivation  of  the  soil,  than  he 
could  acquire  in  any  part  of  the  United 
States,  with  double  the  quantity  of  land, 
double  the  amount  of  labor,  and  in  double 
the  length  of  time ;  even  allowing  for  all 
the  disadvantages  under  which  he  may 
have  to  labor  in  Liberia,  and  all  the  facili- 
ties which  he  might  have  in  the  United 
States.  I  am  quite  certain  that  by  pursu- 
ing a  regular,  systematic  and  persevering 
course  of  agricultural  industry  and  frugali- 
ty, the  citizens  of  Liberia  may,  with  no 
other  means  than  those  which  every  indi- 
vidual can  readily  procure,  produce  not 
only  enough  of  those  articles  which  are 
peculiar  to  tropical  climates,  for  their  own 
use,  but  a  large  surplus,  for  exportation. 
And,  any  man  in  Liberia,  who  enjoys  a 
tolerable  degree  of  health,  and  who  does 
not  live  comfortably  and  independently, 
may,  without  any  violation  of  the  princi- 
ples of  truth  or  justice,  charge  the  defi- 
ciency to  his  own  account. 

SKETCHY-NO.  6. 

PRODUCTIONS — Continued. — One  of  the 
most  important  and  valuable  indigenous 
articles  of  the  vegetable  kingdom  in  inter- 
tropical  Africa,  is  the  Palm  ;  which  is  one 
of  the  most  remarkable  and  useful  trees  in 
the  world.  There  are  two  or  three  species  of 
the  palm  in  Liberia  ;  one  of  which,  by  its 
towering  height  and  graceful  appearance, 
attracts  particular  attention.  The  tree  which 
yields  the  nuts  from  which  oil  is  extracted, 
seldom  grows  to  the  height  of  more  than 
twenty -five  feet.  It  resembles  the  cocoanut 
tree,having,likethat,long  leaves  or  branches, 
which  are  attached  to  the  upper  part  of 
the  body  of  the  tree,  and  which  hang  in 
graceful  curves.  The  fruit  grows  in  clus- 
ters or  branches,  near  the  base  of  the  stalks 
of  the  leaves.  The  nut  is  oval,  about  an 
inch  long  ;  and,  when  ripe  is  of  a  deep  red 
color.  The  oil  is  extracted  from  the  pulp 


SKETCHES    OF    LIBERIA 


Palm— Camwood— Palma-cristi,  &c.— Animals— Elephants— Leopards. 


of  the  nut,  which  yields  very  abundantly. 
It  is  manufactured  by  the  natives  ;  and  sev- 
eral hundred  thousand  gallons  are  annually 
exported  from  Liberia.  Palm  trees  may 
be  seen  in  every  part  of  Liberia,  adorning 
the  hills  and  valleys  ;  and  furnishing  not 
only  great  quantities  of  oil  for  exportation, 
as  well  as  for  domestic  uses,  but  yielding  a 
variety  of  other  useful  substances  ; — a  pe- 
culiar beverage  called  "palm  wine,"  which 
is  procured  by  tapping  the  tree,  and  which 
in  taste  very  much  resembles  wine-whey  ; 
also  a  substance  which  grows  at  the*  top  of 
the  tree,  called  "  palm-cabbage"  ;  and 
which,  when  boiled,  has  an  agreeable 
taste ; — and  from  the  fibres  of  the  leaves, 
the  natives  get  materials  for  making  baskets, 
hats,  &c.  Palm  oil  is  extensively  used  by 
the  Liberians  as  a  substitute  for  sperm  oil 
and  candles ;  and  also  in  culinary  opera- 
tions, as  a  substitute  for  lard  and  butter. 
And,  for  all  needful  purposes,  to  which 
those  articles  are  applied,  it  answers  very 
well.  The  average  price  of  palm  oil  in 
Liberia  is  about  thirty-three  cents  a  gallon. 

Another  valuable  tree,  which  is  indi- 
genous and  peculiar  to  intertropical  Africa, 
is  the  Cam  wood ;  which  grows  abundantly 
in  the  forests,  about  a  hundred  miles  from 
the  coast.  This  is  one  of  the  most  valuable 
dye-woods  in  the  world  ;  and  hundreds  of 
tons  are  annually  exported  from  Liberia. 

The  Palma-cristi,  the  seeds  of  which 
yield  castor  oil,  is  also  indigenous  in  Liberia ; 
and  I  have  no  doubt  that  the  regular  culti- 
vation of  this  valuable  shrub  would  richly 
repay  the  laborer  for  the  little  trouble  which 
it  would  require. 

The  tree  which  yields  the  medicinal  bal- 
sam, called  Copaiva,  may  also  be  seen  oc- 
casionally growing  wild  in  the  forests  of 
Liberia  ;  and  I  doubt  not  that  the  juice 
might  be  collected  in  sufficient  quantities,  to 
become  a  valuable  article  of  exportation. 


Several  species  of  the  Jlcacia  (Gum  Ara- 
bic tree)  grow  in  Liberia  ;  and  some  of  the 
gum  is  of  superior  quality. 

I  have  seen  some  specimens  of  Olibanum, 
(Frankincense,)  which,  as  the  natives  in- 
formed me,  were  collected  from  large  trees 
which  grow  abundantly  in  the  forest. 

I  have  frequently  seen  the  Caoutchouc  or 
Gum-elastic  tree  growing  in  Liberia  ;  some 
of  which  are  forty-feet,  or  more,  in  height. 

The  forests  of  Liberia  also  furnish  many 
different  kinds  of  valuable  timber,  well 
suited  for  ship  or  boat  building,  cabinet 
work,  and  all  the  various  operations  in  car- 
pentry ;  the  principal  of  which  are  Wist- 
more,  Brimstone,  Rose-wood,  Mulberry, 
Bastard  Mahogany,  Saffron,  Mangrove, 
African  Oak,  Hickory ,  Poplar,  Persimmon 
and  Sassa-wood.  Some  of  these  make  very 
beautiful  cabinet  work. 

A  considerable  variety  of  medicinal 
plants,  besides  those  to  which  I  have  al- 
luded, may  be  found  in  Liberia  ;  among 
which  is  the  Croton  Tiglium,  a  small  tree 
or  shrub,  with  spreading  branches,  yielding 
a  capsular  fruit,  from  the  seeds  of  which 
the  Croton  oil  is  extracted. 

ANIMALS. — The  principal  wild  animals 
which  infest  the  forests  or  rivers  of  Libe- 
ria, are  the  Elephant,  Leopard,  Hippopota- 
mus, Crocodile,  Porcupine,  Wild  Hog, 
Boa  Constictor,  several  species  of  the  Deer, 
and  several  species  of  the  Ape. 

Elephants  are  quite  numerous  about  a 
hundred  miles  back  in  the  interior  ;  and  the 
natives  make  a  regular  business  of  hunting 
and  killing  them,  for  the  ivory  of  which  their 
tusks  are  composed.  These  animals  were 
formerly  frequently  seen  in  the  vicinity  of 
some  of  the  settlements  ;  but  they  are  now 
seldom  seen  within  fifty  miles  of  the  sea- 
coast. 

Leopards  are  occasionally  seen  prowling 


SKETCHES    OF   LIBERIA. 


Hippopotami— Crocodiles— Deer— Monkeys,  &c — Ants— Drivers. 


about  the  outskirts  of  some  of  the  settle- 
ments ;  and  they  sometimes  carry  away 
small  domesticated  animals  at  night.  But 
they  are  much  less  numerous  and  trouble- 
some, than  formerly.  They  never  attack  a 
person,  except  after  having  been  wounded. 

Hippopotami  are  occasionally  seen  on  the 
banks  of  the  river,  some  of  them  of  im- 
mense size — weighing  a  thousand  pounds 
or  more.  They  are  sometimes  killed  by  the 
natives.  They  are  harmless  animals  ;  and 
they  always  endeavor  to  escape,  when  in- 
terrupted, by  plunging  into  the  water. 

Crocodiles  (erroneously  called  Alligators) 
are  frequently  seen  basking  in  (he  sunshine 
on  the  banks  of  the  rivers,  or  on  the  little 
rocky  islands.  They  always  make  their 
escape  into  the  water,  when  approached  by 
a  person  on  shore,  or  in  a  boat  or  canoe. 

Boa  Constrictors  are  sometimes  killed  in 
the  forests  in  Liberia.  The  largest  I  ever 
saw  was  fifteen  feet  long,  and  fifteen  inches 
in  circumference.  Much  larger  ones  have 
been  killed.  I  never  heard  of  their  attack- 
ing an  individual.  Serpents,  however,  are 
much  less  numerous  in  Liberia  than  is 
generally  supposed  ;  and  poisonous  snakes 
are  perhaps  less  common  than  in  many 
parts  of  the  United  States. 

Deer  are  very  numerous  ;  and  they  af- 
ford excellent  venison. 

Monkeys  are  found  in  great  numbers  in 
the  forests.  I  have  seen  a  dozen,  or  more, 
at  one  time,  jumping  from  tree  to  tree,  with 
great  dexterity.  Several  species  of  the  ape 
tribe  are  occasionally  caught  by  the  natives  ; 
among  which  is  the  Chimpanzee,  so  remark- 
able for  its  near  approximation  in  appear- 
ance to  the  human  race.  Some  of  these 
"  wild  men  of  the  woods"  have  been  seen 
as  large  as  an  ordinary  sized  man.  The 
1  argest  that  I  ever  saw  was  about  the  size 
of  a  child  two  or  three  years  old.  The  old 
ones  are  never  caught,  and  are  seldom  kil- 


led. They  are  very  powerful,  as  well  as 
very  active. 

Besides  these,  the  Guana,  the  Ichneumon, 
the  Sloth,  the  beautiful  and  ever-changing 
Chamelion,  many  varities  of  Lizards,  and 
several  species  of  Jints  may  frequently  be 
seen. 

One  variety  or  species  of  ants  is  very  re- 
markable, in  consequence  of  the  immense 
conical  mounds  of  earth  which  they  rear, 
and  in  which  they  make  their  nests.  These 
mounds  are  sometimes  ten  or  twelve  feet 
high,  and  eight  or  ten  feet  in  diameter  at 
the  base.  These  ants  are  about  the  size  of 
the  large  black  ant  in  the  United  States. 
The  queen,  however,  is  much  larger — some 
of  them  two  inches  in  length  and  nearly 
two  inches  in  circumference.  In  the  in- 
terior of  the  mounds,  about  half-way  from 
the  bottom,  is  a  large  vaulted  chamber,  the 
floor  of  which  is  very  hard  and  smooth.  In 
the  centre  of  the  floor  is  the  nest,  in  the  in- 
most recess  of  which,  lives  the  queen  in 
luxurious  ease,  accompanied  by  the  king, 
whose  size  does  not  vary  much  from  the 
ordinary  ant,  but  who  is  easily  recognized 
by  a  striking  difference  in  physical  confor- 
mation. Whenever  the  queen  dies,  or  is 
captured,  all  the  ants  desert  the  hill ;  which 
is  left  to  "crumble  into  dust  again. '* 
Many  of  these  deserted  mounds  may  be 
seen  in  almost  every  part  of  Liberia. 

Another  species  of  ants  (familiarly  known 
by  the  name  of  Drivers}  is  still  more  re- 
markable. They  are  about  the  size  of  the 
black  ant  of  America — that  is,  about  one 
fourth  to  one  half  of  an  inch  in  length. 
They  may  frequently  be  seen  marching 
along,  in  the  most  systematic  order,  and 
regularity  of  movement.  They  move  in  a 
solid  compact  column  of  great  length  ;  and 
they  appear  to  be  under  the  direction  of 
able  leaders  and  rigid  disciplinarians.  No 
common  obstacle  turns  them  out  of  their 


SKETCHES    OF   LIBERIA. 


29 


Domesticated  animals— Beeves— Cows— Sheep— Goats,  &c. 


course ;  and  whosoever  is  so  unfortunate 
as  to  come  in  their  line  of  march,  will  have 
to  pay  for  his  temerity ;  and  will  be  re- 
minded to  be  more  careful  in  future.  Hun- 
dreds seize  fiercely  on  the  intruding  foot;  and 
the  unwary  object  of  their  vengeance  is 
compelled  to  retreat  from  the  scene  of  at- 
tack. These  tiny  warriors  are  very  trouble- 
some ;  but  they  are  exceedingly  useful  in 
expelling  noxious  vermin  from  every  place 
into  which  they  may  enter  in  the  course 
of  their  perambulations.  Whenever  a 
battalion  of  drivers  enters  a  dwelling  house, 
the  inmates  are  obliged,  for  the  time,  to 
yield  undisputed  possession,  at  least  of  that 
part  of  the  house  which  the  little  warriors 
may  be  searching.  They  are  not,  however, 
always  unwelcome  visitors  ;  for  they  never 
fail  to  expel  rats,  mice,  and  every  species 
of  vermin  ;  making  a  clean  sweep  as  they 
go.  Whenever  they  come  to  a  small 
water-course,  the  larger  and  stronger  ones 
dexterously  form  themselves  into  an  arch, 
by  clinging  to  each  other ;  thus  making  a 
bridge,  over  which  the  smaller  ones  pass 
dry  shod.  Even  in  their  ordinary  march 
over  level  ground,  they  seem  to  cling  to 
each  other  in  a  solid  phalnax  ;  the  stronger 
ones  occupying  the  flanks,  and  arching 
themselves  over  the  weaker  ones,  who  oc- 
cupy the  centre,  and  who  are  thus  protected 
by  the  others. 

All  kinds  of  animals,  both  large  and 
small,  are  afraid  of  drivers  ;  nor  have  they 
any  regard  to  size,  in  the  objects  of  their 
warfare.  They  are  very  useful  in  chasing 
away  or  killing  snakes,  lizards,  scorpions, 
centipedes,  &c.,  which,  were  it  not  for  the 
drivers,  would  be  exceedingly  troublesome, 
and  even  dangerous.  Whenever  they  visit 
a  house,  they  search  it  all  over,  and  expel 
every  living,  moving  thing,  that  they  find  ; 
after  which,  they  retire  peaceably,  and 
yield  possession  to  the  former  occupants. 


They  make  their  nests  beneath  the  surface 
of  the  ground  ;  and  I  presume  they  sally 
ibrth  from  their  quarters  only  in  search  of 
bod  ;  at  which  times,  the  line  of  march  is 
sometimes  a  hundred  yards,  or  more,  in 
ength. 

The  principal  domesticated  animals  in  Li- 
beria, are  Bullocks  or  Beeves,  Cows, 
Sheep,  Goats,  Swine,  Geese,  Turkeys, 
Ducks,  and  Chickens. 

Beeves  are  frequently  brought  into  the 
settlements  for  sale  by  the  natives,  and 
they  are  sometimes  raised  by  the  citizens. 
They  may  be  raised  easily  in  any  desirable 
quantity. 

Cows  are  numerous,  but  they  do  not 
give  much  milk.  Some  of  the  cows  which 
are  brought  from  the  interior,  one  or  two 
hundred  miles  from  the  coast,  are  as  large 
as  qrdinary  cows  in  the  United  States  ;  but 
they  do  not  give  half  so  much  milk.  If 
properly  attended  to,  however,  I  think 
they  would  afford  milk  much  more  plenti- 
fully. 

Sheep  and  goats  can  be  very  easily  raised 
in  Liberia — as  easily,  perhaps,  as  in  any 
other  part  of  the  world  ;  and  they  both  af- 
ford good  wholesome  animal  food.  The 
sheep  are  covered  with  hair  instead  of  wool.. 
The  goats  furnish  very  good  milk. 

Swine  do  not  thrive  so  well  in  Liberia  as 
in  some  parts  of  the  United  States ;  but 
they  can  be  raised  in  sufficient  abundance 
for  the  wants  of  the  people. 

Geese  and  Ducks  may  be  raised  without 
any  more  difficulty  than  in  the  United 
States ;  and  within  a  few  years  past 
Turkeys  have  become  much  more  plentiful 
than  they  formerly  were. 

Perhaps  in  no  other  part  of  the  world! 
can  Chickens  be  raised  more  easily  and 
more  plentifully,  than  in  Liberia.  With 
very  little  trouble,  every  family  may  always 
have  a  sufficient  supply  of  chickens. 


30 


SKETCHES    OP    LIBERIA. 


Horses — Diseases— Acclimating  fever. 


Horses  are  plentiful  in  the  interior,  within 
three  hundred  miles  of  the  coast,  but  they 
do  not  thrive  well  in  the  settlements  ;  per- 
haps inconsequence  principally  of  the  want 
of  proper  management.  They  are  oc- 
casionally brought  down  by  the  natives, 
and  some  of  them  are  very  beautiful.  They 
are  small — seldom  more  than  twelve  hands 
high.  I  am  quite  satisfied  that  they  never 
can  be  used  to  much  advantage,  as  draft 
animals,  in  the  present  settlements  of  Libe- 
ria. But  for  all  necessary  purposes,  the 
native  oxen  can  be  used  as  a  substitute  for 
horses.  I  have  seen  some  of  the  small 
bullocks  broken  to  the  yoke,  and  working 
steadily  and  effectually.  The  Liberians, 
however,  have  not  yet  given  much  attention 
to  the  breaking  and  working  of  oxen — by 
no  means  as  much  as  they  ought  to 
to  give.  I  trust  that  the  time  may  not  be 
distant,  when  the  plough  and  the  cart  will 
be  much  more  extensively  used,  than  at 
present. 

SKETCH— No.    7. 

DISEASES, — The  physical  system  of  every 
individual  who  removes  from  a  tempe- 
rate to  a  tropical  climate  must  undergo 
some  change — must  experience  some  pro- 
cess of  acclimation  :  which  may,  or  may 
not  be  attended  with  much  fever,  according 
to  circumstances — to  the  constitutional  pe- 
culiarites  of  the  individual,  the  nature  of 
the  surrounding  country,  the  previous  ha- 
bits of  life,  the  situation  at  the  time  with 
respect  to  regimen,  comforts,  &c.;  and  by 
no  means  the  least,  the  state  of  the  mind 
with  respect  to  calmness  and  patience,  or 
irritability  and  disquietude  ;  together  with 
other  imaginable  circumstances.  So  that 
the  developments  of  fever  are  exceedingly 
various,  requiring  various  methods  of  treat- 
ment— each  method  to  be  adapted  to  the 
individual  case,  as  circumstances  may  re- 
quire. Hence,  the  impossibility  of  furnish- 
ing an  exact  or  complete  treatise  on  the 


subject — of  setting  down  any  characteristic 
marks  of  the  Acclimating  Fever,  or  of 
adopting  any  particular  mode  of  treat- 
ment. 

Instead  of  pursuing  a  systematic  course 
of  treatment  in  all  the  cases  which  came 
under  my  observation,  I  was  obliged  to  lay 
aside  all  plans,  and  to  modify  my  treatment 
in  such  a  manner  as  necessarily  to  discoun- 
tenance, to  a  considerable  extent,  all  the  la- 
bored theories  of  medical  writers,  relative 
to  the  diseases  of  tropical  climates.  The 
leading  object  which  I  always  had  in  view 
in  the  treatment  of  this  and  all  other  dis- 
eases, and  which  I  regard  as  of  the  great- 
est importance,  was,  to  preserve  the  natu- 
ral strength  of  the  patient,  as  much  as  pos- 
sible— to  avoid  the  too  free  use  of  any 
means  by  which  the  system  might  be  great- 
ly or  unnecessarily  debilitated.  Conse- 
quently, I  seldom  used  very  active  purga- 
tives, and  scarcely  ever  resorted  to  the  lan- 
cet ;  and  consequently,  I  used  very  little 
wine,  brandy,  or  any  other  kind  of  stimu- 
lant, to  bring  the  patient  up  after  he  had 
been  brought  down  by  debilitating  treat- 
ment. And,  not  unfrequently,  my  patients 
were  able  to  walk  about  within  a  few  days, 
after  having  experienced  what  at  first  was 
regarded  as  an  unusually  violent  attack. 
The  rapid  convalescence  of  some  of  them 
was  indeed  astonishing  to  myself. 

Some  persons,  in  passing  through  the 
physical  change,  or  process  of  acclimation, 
have  so  little  fever  that  they  do  not  require 
medical  treatment  at  all.  And  I  have  no 
doubt  that  many  persons  might  pass  safe- 
ly through  the  acclimating  process  without 
taking  a  grain  of  medicine,  if  they  could  or 
would  exercise  the  necessary  precautions  in 
the  preservation  of  health;  such  as  proper 
attention  to  their  habits,  diet  and  clothing, 
to  the  extent  of  exposure  to  the  heat  of  the 
day,  as  well  as  to  the  damp  and  chilling 


SKETCHES    OF    LIBERIA. 


31 


Character  of  the  acclimating  fever. 


night-air,  and  especially  to  the  avoidance 
of  all  sources  of  mental  inquietude. 

In  some  cases,  the  physical  system  be- 
comes sufficiently  adapted  to  the  climate  to 
resist  the  surrounding  deleterious  influences, 
in  two  or  three  months.  In  other  cases,  a 
year  or  more  elapses  before  this  desirable 
point  is  reached.  And  in  some  cases,  the 
physical  system  and  the  climate  seem  to  be 
at  variance  for  several  years. 

In  the  course  of  my  observations  in  the 
treatment  of  the  acclimating  fever,  I  fre- 
quently noticed  that  persons  who  had  pre- 
viously suffered  from  local  inflammatory 
affections  were  extremely  liable  to  have  a 
recurrence  of  some  or  all  of  the  symptoms 
of  the  old  disorder,  in  consequence  of  the 
previously  inflamed  organ  or  tissue  being 
the  "weak  point"  in  the  system.  And 
in  some  cases,  persons  who  might  have  en- 
joyed tolerable  health  in  the  United  Stages 
die  very  soon  after  their  arrival  in  Liberia, 
in  consequence  of  the  physical  system  not 
being  sufficiently  vigorous  to  undergo  the 
necessary  change,  in  order  to  become  adapt- 
ed to  the  climate.  Hence  the  impropriety 
of  persons  emigrating  to  Liberia  whose 
constitutions  have  become  much  impaired 
by  previous  disease,  by  intemperance,  or 
otherwise.  And  hence  the  necessity  of 
Missionary  Societies  being  careful  in  regard 
to  the  physical  as  well  as  to  the  moral  quali- 
fications of  those  persons  who  offer  them- 
selves as  missionaries  to  Africa. 
1  The  majority  of  persons  from  the  United 
States  who  take  up  their  residence  in  Libe- 
ria have  some  development  of  fever,  in 
some  form  or  other,  within  the  first  two 
months  after  their  arrival.  The  most  com- 
mon form,  perhaps,  is  that  which  medical 
writers  generally  call  "Bilious  Remitting 
Fever,"  which  is  usually  simple  in  its  cha- 
racter, and  which  generally  yields  readily, 
in  a  few  days,  to  simple,  mild,  appropriate 
treatment.  The  first  attack,  however,  is 


generally  followed,  within  a  few  days  or 
weeks,  by  a  second  similar,  or  nearly  simi- 
lar, attack,  or,  which  is  more  common, 
by  one  or  other  of  the  varieties  of  the 
intermitting  form  of  fever  ;  and  to  this  lat- 
ter kind  of  fever  the  individual  is  more  or 
less  subject  until  his  system  shall  have  be- 
come sufficiently  adapted  to  the  climate  and 
to  the  local  influences  of  the  country  to  resist 
their  peculiar  effects.  Not  unfrequently 
the  first  attack,  as  well  as  the  subsequent 
ones,  assumes  the  intermitting  form;  in  most 
c^ses,  however,  attended  with  considerable 
biliary  derangement.  The  fever  seldom  as- 
sumes a  strictly  continued  form,  is  seldom  in- 
flammatory, and  it  seldom  terminates  in  per- 
manent congestion  of  any  internal  organ. 
The  congestive  and  inflammatory  forms  are 
perhaps  never  exhibited,  except  incases  in 
which  there  is  some  striking  constitutional 
peculiarity.  Bilious  vomiting  frequently  oc- 
curs, in  both  the  remitting  and  intermitting 
forms;  and  sometimes  gastric  irritability  pre- 
vails to  a  considerable  extent,  and  renders  the 
proper  management  of  the  case  rather  diffi- 
cult. In  all  cases  the  tongue  is  considerably 
furred,  and  in  many  cases  headach,moreor 
less  violent,  continues  during  the  continu- 
ance of  the  fever.  Temporary  delirium  is 
sometimes  present,  during  high  febrile  ex- 
citement; but  it  usually  subsides  with  the  re- 
mission or  intermission  of  the  fever. 

In  reference  to  the  most  successful  m"o"tfe" 
of  treatment,  it  is  impossible  to  furnish  any 
statement  which  will  be  sufficiently  intelli- 
gible and  comprehensive  to  justify  the*  ap- 
plication of  remedial  medicinal  means,  with- 
out the  judicious  exercise  of  an  enlightened 
judgment.  I  may,  however,  point  out  a 
few  land-marks,  and  a  few  rocks  and  shoals, 
by  which  the  untutored  medical  mariner 
may  be  able  to  steer  his  course  with 
more  safety  than  if  he  were  entirely  desti- 
tute of  such  information.  £  And  first,  I  would 
remark  that  there  are  two  points  of  essen- 
tial importance,  which  cannot  be  too 


32 


SKETCHES    OF    LIBERIA. 


Treatment  of  the  acclimating  fever. 


/''""Strongly  impressed  on  the  consideration 
of  all  persons  who  expect  to  reside  in  Libe- 
ria :  The  first  is,  the  great  advantage  of 
mental  as  well  as  physical  quietude,  and 
patient  resignation  ;  which  necessarily  im- 
ply the  avoidance,  as  much  as  possible,  of 
both  mental  and  physical  irritability,  of 
despondency  or  gloomy  forebodings,  and 
of  distrust  in  Divine  Providence.  1  Whoever 

"""goes  to  Africa,  ought  to  go  with  the  expect- 
ation of  living,  and  if  he  should  get  sick  he 
ought  to  try  to  get  well  again — to  avoid  all 
excitement,  and  to  endeavor  to  be  cheer- 
ful and  contented.  The  greatest  difficulty 
with  which  I  generally  had  to  contend,  in 
the  treatment  of  the  acclimating  fever,  was 
to  prevent  mental  depression  or  desponden- 
cy in  my  patients.  And  I  have  invari- 
ably found ,  in  cases  in  which  patients  ob- 
stinately and  pertinaciously  yielded  to  des- 
pondency, and  abandoned  all  hope  of  get- 
ting well,  that,  sooner  or  later,  their  expec- 
tations were  realized,  and  death  closed  the 
scene.  The  other  point  to  which  I  would 
direct  particular  attention  is,  the  danger  of 
using  medicinal  agents  too  freely — of  rely- 
ing too  much  on  the  curative  virtues  of  me- 
dicines, and  not  giving  due  attention  to  aux- 
iliary means ;  which  indeed  are  often  of 
much  more  importance  than  all  the  pills  and 
powders  of  the  doctor  or  the  druggist.  I 
am  quite  satisfied  that  the  lives  of  many 
persons  have  been  sacrificed  in  .Liberia,  by 
the  too  free  or  the  injudicious  use  of  medi- 
cines, especially  calomel  and  drastic  cath- 
artics. 

In  reference  to  the  use  of  calomel,  I  may 
state,  that  although  I  generally  found  the 
necessity  for  its  use  in  the  majority  of  cases 
of  the  acclimating  fever  which  came  under 
my  treatment,  yet  I  used  it  much  more 
cautiously  and  sparingly  than  it  is  general- 
ly used  by  medical  practitioners  in  the 
United  States.  I  never  gave  more  than 
eight  grains  at  a  time,  and  seldom  gave 
more  than  fifteen  grains  during  one  attack 
of  sickness.  Whenever  I  found  the  ne- 


cessity for  its  administration,  in  any  case, 
J  sometimes  gave  it  in  about  two  grain 
doses,  at  intervals  of  about  two  hours,  usu- 
ally in  combination  with  some  diaphoretic 
or  sweating  medicine,  especially  James' 
Powder.  After  three  or  four  of  these 
doses  had  been  taken,  I  usually  directed  a 
moderate  dose  of  castor  oil  to  be  taken, 
within  ten  or  twelve  hours  after  the  first 
dose.  In  the  beginning  of  an  attack  of  fe- 
ver, especially  in  those  cases  in  which 
the  tongue  was  much  coated,  and  the  pa- 
tient complained  of  nausea,  without  free 
vomiting,  I  frequently  gave  a  dose  of  ca- 
lomel and  ipecacuanha,  in  the  proportion  of 
six  or  eight  grains  of  the  former  to  about 
twenty  of  the  latter.  This  dose  usually 
produced  sufficient  action  on  the  bowels,  as 
well  as  vomiting.  If  it  failed  to  move  the 
bowels,  I  always  directed  some  mild  laxa- 
tive afterwards generally  castor  oil  or 

rhubarb.  In  some  cases  I  had  no  occasion 
to  give  any  other  medicine,  during  the  at- 
tack, than  the  dose  of  calomel  and  ipecac  ; 
except  generally,  in  the  intermtitent  form, 
quinine  to  break  up  the  periodicity  of  the 
attack.  I  never  gave  calomel  with  the  in- 
tention of  producing  salivation  : — this  re- 
sult I  always  endeavored  to  guard  against; 
and,  of  th<?  hundreds  of  cases  which  I  treat- 
ed, very  few  ever  complained  of  the  slight- 
est soreness  of  the  mouth.  In  the  few 
cases,  in  which  salivation  resulted  from  the 
administration  of  calomel,  in  consequence 
of  a  strong  constitutional  tendency  in  the 
patients,  I  always  observed  that  convales- 
cence was  more  tedious — the  patient  re- 
quiring a  longer  time  to  regain  his  health 
and  strength. 

My  favorite  diaphoretics  were,  James r 
powder  and  sweet  spirit  of  nitre ;  both  of 
which  I  used  frequently  and  freely.  I 
generally  found  the  latter  of  these  two 
medicines  very  beneficial,  in  producing 
perspiration,  when  given  during  the  febrile 
excitement,  in  the  dose  of  about  a  teaspoon- 


SKETCHES    OP    LIBERIA. 


33 


Medicines  used  in  treating  the  acclimating  fever. 


ful,  at  intervals  of  an  hour  or  two,  I 
sometimes  found  it  necessary  to  be  more 
cautious  in  the  administration  of  the  for- 
mer, especially  in  cases  in  which  much 
tendency  to  gastric  irritability  existed.  I 
seldom  used  nitrate  of  potash,  (a  favorite 
diaphoretic  with  some  physicians  in  this 
country,)  in  consequence  of  the  tendency, 
in  many  cases,  to  irritability  of  the  sto- 
mach. 

In  reference  to  the  use  of  opiates,  I  may 
state,  that,  although  I  frequently  found 
them  highly  beneficial,  under  circumstances 
which  peculiarly  indicated  the  necessity  of 
their  being  administered ;  yet,  I  always 
endeavored  to  avoid  the  use  of  them  as 
much  as  possible,  in  consequence  especi- 
ally of  their  general  astringent  and  consti- 
pating effects.  Whenever  the  case  seemed 
to  demand  the  use  of  any  opiate,  and  the 
bowels  were  not  constipated ,  especially  if 
they  were  looser  than  desirable,  I  generally 
gave  free  doses — seldom  less  than  fifty 
drops  of  laudanum,  or  one-fourth  of  a 
grain  of  Morphine.  In  some  cases,  in 
which  the  general  system  was  in  a  highly 
irritable  condition — quick  and  feeble  pulse, 
dry  skin,  and  sometimes  violent  headach, 
and  sleeplessness,  with  or  without  delirium, 
I  sometimes  gave  about  one-third  of  a  grain 
of  morphine,  in  combination  with  five  or 
six  grains  of  James'  powder,  at  night ; 
and  generally  the  patient  was  decidedly 
better  on  the  following  morning ;  after 
having  enjoyed  refreshing  sleep  during  the 
night.  A  teaspoonful  of  paregoric,  under 
similar  circumstances,  sometimes  also  pro- 
duces very  beneficial  effects.  But  the  judi- 
cious administration  of  opiate  medicines, 
requires  the  exercise  of  more  skill  and 
judgment,  than  most  persons  possess,  who 
have  not  given  particular  attention  to  the 
study  of  the  animal  economy,  and  the 
effects  of  medicinal  agents. 


I  would  strongly  discourage  the  use  of 
Fpsom  salts,  as  a  cathartic  :  the  only  way 
in  which  it  ought  to  be  given,  (if  at  all,)  ia 
in  broken  doses — not  more  than  a  teaspoon-* 
ful  at  a  time :  in  some  cases  of  eruptive 
diseases,  it  may  be  beneficially  used  in  this 
way;  but  it  should  ftever  be  given  in  active 
purgative  doses.  This  remark  is  applicar 
ble  to  all  other  hydrogogue  and  drastic 
cathartic  medicines.  A  favorite  combina- 
tion with  me,  was  three  grains  of  calomel, 
one-sixth  of  a  grain  of  tartar  emetic,  and 
six  grains  of  compound  extract  of  colo- 
cynth,  made  into  two  pills  :  I  sometimes 
added  one  grain  of  gamboge  ;  but  I  gene-, 
rally  found-  the  pills  sufficiently  active  with- 
out the  gamboge,  if  the  medicines  were 
good.  This  dose  I  used  frequently  to  give, 
as  an  anti-bilious  cathartic,  and  as  a  prepa- 
rative for  the  administration  of  quinine, 
during  an  attack  of  intermittent  fever.  I 
have  several  times  taken  this  combination 
myself,  and  always  with  decided  benefit, 
As  a  mild,  certain,  and  safe  laxative,  in 
cases  in  which  the  principal  object  was,  to 
produce  action  of  the  bowels,  I  never  found 
any  thing  to  answer  so  well  as  castor  oil, 
Rhubarb,  either  alone,  or  in  combination 
with  calcined  magnesia,  will  sometimes 
answer  very  well. 

I  frequently  found  great  advantage  from 
the  application  of  blistering  plasters  ;  es-> 
pecially  to  the  pit  of  the  stomach,  in  cases 
attended  with  much  irritability  of  that  or- 
gan. I  generally  found  that  the  vomiting 
ceased  as  soon  as  the  plaster  began  to  pro- 
duce its  peculiar  effects.  I  sometimes  also 
applied  a  blister  plaster  to  the  back  of  the 
neck,  in  violent  headach,  with  decided  ad- 
vantage. In  cases  attended  with  marked 
inflammatory  action  in  the  stomach — great 
tenderness  to  pressure,  irritability,  and 
other  prominent  symptoms,  I  sometimes 
resorted  to  local  depletion,  by  cupping  ;  and 
1  sometimes  applied  cups  to  the  temples, 


34 


SKETCHES    OF    LIBERIA. 


Leeches— Quinine— How  administered. 


to  relieve  the  head.  I,  however,  more 
frequently  resorted  to  the  free  application 
of  leeches  in  such  cases.  These  little  ani- 
mals are  very  plentiful  in  Liberia,  and  they 
can  be  easily  procured,  at  any  time.  They 
are  about  one-third  the  size  of  the  ordinary 
foreign  leeches,  which  are  used  in  the  Uni- 
ted States,  and  they  draw  much  less  blood. 
I  have  had  nearly  a  hundred  of  them  ap- 
plied to  myself  at  one  time. 

In  the  intermittent  form  of  fever,  Quinine 
is  the  remedium  mggnum.  I  seldom  failed 
to  break  up  the  attack,  in  a  few  days,  by 
the  judicious  use  of  this  medicine  ;  which, 
perhaps,  approaches  more  nearly  to  a 
specific,  than  any  other  medicinal  article. 
Although  I  had  frequent  attacks  of  inter- 
mittent fever  during  my  residence  in  Libe- 
ria ;  yet  I  never  had  more  than  three- 
paroxysm,  during  any  one  attack ;  and  I 
was  generally  able  to  prevent  the  third,  by 
the  use  of  this  valuable  remedy.  My  usual 
mode  of  taking  or  administering  it,  was  in 
doses  of  about  two  grains,  at  intervals  of 
two  hours,  commencing  about  eight  hours 
before  the  time  of  the  expected  chill  or 
ague  ;  whenever  circumstances  would  admit 
its  administration  in  this  way.  Sometimes, 
I  gave  it  at  intervals  of  one  hour,  commen- 
cing four  or  five  hours  before  the  time  of 
the  expected  paroxysm.  I  generally  found 
eight  or  ten  grains  to  be  sufficient.  In  cases 
in  which  the  chill  or  ague  came  on  early 
in  the  forenoon — say  7  or  8  o'clock — I  gene- 
rally gave  a  single  dose  of  about  five  grains, 
within  an  hour  of  the  time  at  which  the 
paroxysm  was  expected.  In  most  cases, 
I  believe  one  such  dose  would  prevent  an 
ague,  if  it  could  be  taken  within  an  hour 
of  the  expected  attack.  But,  in  conse- 
quence of  more  or  less  irregularity  respect- 
ing the  time  at  which  a  paroxysm  might 
be  expected,  I  generally  found  it  necessary 
to  commence  the  use  of  the  quinine  several 
hours  previous  to  the  time  at  which  the 
preceding  paroxysm  made  its  appearance. 


It  is  best  to  continue  the  use  of  quinine 
two  or  three  days  after  the  chill  or  ague 
has  been  stopped,  jn  two  grain  doses  taken 
several  times  during  the  day. 

I  have  but  little  confidence  in  the  habitu- 
al use  of  wine,  brandy,  porter,  ale,  or  any 
thing  else  of  the  kind,  either  as  preventives 
of  fever,  or  as  tonics  during  convalescence, 
after  an  attack.  The  climate  itself  is  too 
exciting  and  stimulating  to  the  systems  of 
new-comers  generally;  and,  consequently, 
I  always  found  it  better  to  avoid  the  use  of 
stimulating  beverages  ;  except  in  cases  of 
great  physical  prostration  by  disease  ;  in 
which  some  stimulating  draught  was  im- 
peratively demanded.  During  the  first  six 
months  of  my  residence  in  Liberia,  I 
always  found  the  use  of  wine  injurious,  at 
any  time,  in  my  own  case.  And  I  am 
decidedly  of  opinion,  that  cold  water  is  the 
best  beverage,  in  Liberia  as  well  as  in  the 
United  States.  The  moderate  use  of  wine 
or  porter,  or  even  brandy,  may  sometimes 
be  advantageous,  in  those  cases  in  which 
the  system  has  become  greatly  enfeebled, 
by  frequent  attacks  of  fever,  and  by  the 
protracted  enervating  influences  of  the  cli- 
mate ;  but,  in  the  majority  of  cases,  1 
think  the  use  of  such  beverages  ought  to 
be  entirely  dispensed  with. 

I  frequently  found  the  use  of  various 
domestic  remedies  highly  beneficial  in  the 
treatment  of  fevers  in  Liberia,  particularly 
herb-teas,  and  the  pepper  cataplasm.  The 
latter  is  almost  universally  used,  instead  of 
mustard  ;  in  consequence  of  pepper  being 
more  convenient,  as  well  as  more  active  in 
its  effects.  The  pepper  pods  whether  green 
or  red,  are  cut  into  small  pieces,  and  mixed 
with  corn  or  rice  meal,  or  wheat-flour,  and 
water,  and  made  into  a  poultice  or  plaster, 
in  the  same  manner  as  mustard  plasters  are 
usually  made.  The  burning  effects  of  this 
poultice  will  be  experienced  in  a  few  min- 
utes. I  have  frequently  found  it  to  be  very 
beneficial  in  relieving  nausea  or  vomiting, 


SKETCHES    OF    LIBERIA. 


35 


Diseases  continued— Rheumatism— Dropsy— Cutaneous  affections,  &c. 


and  also  colic  pains,  when  applied  over  the 
stomach  or  abdomen.  It  is  also  a  powerful 
revulsive  agent,  when  applied  to  the  ankles, 
wrists,  bottom  of  the  feet,  or  calves  of  the 
legs  ;  and  it  is  peculiarly  beneficial  in  some 
cases,  in  which  the  use  of  such  an  agent  is 
indicated.  The  infusion  of  an  herb  called 
"  fever  tea,"  is  generally  very  beneficial, 
as  a  diaphoretic,  when  taken  warm,  and  as 
an  agreeable  beverage  when  taken  cold, 
instead  of  water.  Various  other  vegetable 
substances,  which  abound  in  Liberia,  may 
be  advantageously  used,  in  making  inno- 
cent and  useful  medicinal  infusions'. 

j  SKETCH— No.  8. 
DISEASES — Continued.— In    addition    to 
the  ordinary  remittent  and  intermittent  fev- 
ers, to  which  I  have  particularly  alluded, 
I  occasionally  met  with  cases  bearing  some 
resemblance  to  other  kinds  of  fever,  which 
are  usually  described  in   medical  book 
but  they   were  generally   not  sufficiently 
marked  to  justify  the  distinctive  appella- 
tions of  nosological  arrangement.     I  never 
saw  a  well-marked  case  of  yellow  fever  in 
Liberia  ;  although  this  disease  is  frequently 
experienced    at    Sierra    Leone,  especially 
among  European  residents.     Acute  inflam- 
matory diseases  are  not  common  in  Liberia. 
I  seldom  met  with  distinctly  marked  cases 
of  pleurisy,  or  of  any  other  violent  or  ac- 
tive inflammatory  disease.  It  is  very  fortu- 
nate that  such  affections  are  not  common  ; 
for  they  are  generally  almost  necessarily 
fatal  in  their  termination. 

Dysentery  and  diarrhea  are  by  no  means 
so  common,  as  might  be  supposed.  I 
seldom  met  with  very  obstinate  cases  of 
either  of  these  diseases.  Slight  attacks  of 
diarrhoea  are  occasionally  brought  on  by  the 
intemperate  use  of  some  kinds  of  fruits ; 
and  occasionally,  in  new-comers,  by  the 
too  free  use  of  some  kinds  of  animal  food, 
particularly  fresh  pork,  beef,  or  fish.  I 
met  with  a  few  cases  of  chronic  dysentery  ; 


and  I  experienced  two  or  three  attacks  my- 
self.    Rheumatism,  both  acute  and  chronic, 
occasionally   occurs,    never    very  violent, 
however,  in  either  form.     Dropsical  affec- 
tions  are  rather  frequent ;  especially  local 
anasarca,  or  dropsy  of  the  cellular  mem- 
brane   beneath  the  skin — a  consequence  of 
general  debility,  produced  by  frequent  at- 
tacks of  fever,  inattention  to  diet  and  cloth- 
ing, and  undue  exposure.   It  is  not  uncom- 
.mon  for  the  feet  and  legs  of  persons  to  swell 
more  or  less,  during   the  acclimating  pro- 
cess ;  especially  white  persons,  and  bright 
mulattoes.      This  swelling  generally  grad- 
ually subsides,  as  the  system  becomes  b«t- 
ter  adapted    to   the  climate.     Ascites,  or 
dropsy  of  the  abdomen,  sometimes  occurs, 
as  a  consequence  of  chronic  affections  of  the 
liver  or  spleen,  especially  enlargement  of 
one  or  both  of  these  organs,  after  a  long 
residence    in    the   country.      Such   cases, 
however,  are  not  so  common  as  might  be 
supposed.     I  never  met  with  more  than  a 
dozen  cases,  during  my  residence  in  Libe- 
ria.    No  course  of  treatment  which  I  ever 
pursued,  in  such  cases,  seemed  to  produce 
any  decidedly  beneficial  effects. 

Cutaneous  affections  are  quite  common  ; 
some  of  which  are  peculiar  to  the  country 
or  climate.  Among  the  common  eruptive 
ases,  measles  and  erysiphelas  are  most 
frequently  observed.  The  former  of  these 
diseases  prevailed  very  extensively  through- 
out Liberia,  in  the  early  part  of  1845  ;  but 
it  was  generally  milder  than  it  usually  is  in 
the  United  States.  The  latter,  erysiphelas, 
generally  appears  in  a  mild  form,  with  very 
little  or  no  febrile  action  in  the  system.  In 
the  early  part  of  1848,  small-pox  prevailed 
pretty  extensively  in  one  of  the  settlements  ; 
but,  in  nearly  every  case,  it  was  in  the 
modified  form,  called  varioloid.  This  form 
of  small -pox  has  several  times  prevailed, 
epidemically,  in  one  or  other  of  the  settle- 
ments ;  but  it  seldom  proved  fatal.  I 


36 


SKETCHES    OFLIBERIA. 


Leprosy — Ulcers— Flatulent  colic. 


never  saw  but  one  case  of  genuine  variola, 
in  Liberia ;  although,  in  some  cases,  the 
small-pox  contagion  results  in  the  exhibition 
of  this  form  of  the  disease,  during  the  epi- 
demical prevalence  of  varioloid. 

A  peculiar  endemical  pustulous  affection, 
called  "  craw-craw, "  or  "  kru-kru,"some- 
,  times  attacks  persons  who  are  not  very 
careful  in  regard  to  cleanliness.  It  is  a  very 
common  disease  among  the  natives,  and 
it  is  generally  regarded  as  being  contageous. 
It  is  sometimes  very  painful  and  trouble- 
some. Another  disease  of  the  skin,  which 
is  common  among  the  natives,  and  which 
is  occasionally  observed  among  the  Libe- 
rians,  is  the  yaws  ;  which  consists  of  ele- 
vated excrescences,  usually  appearing  in 
continuous  clusters,  and  discharging  a  thin 
corrosive  ichor.  Sometimes  the  yaws  ap- 
pear on  the  soles  of  the  feet,  and  prevent 
the  patient  from  walking.  Both  these  dis- 
eases are  tedious  and  perplexing  to  both 
the  patient  and  the  doctor. 

Lepra,  or  leprosy,  is  occasionally  seen  in 
Liberia  ;  especially*  among  the  aborigines. 
This  distressing  disease  usually  appears 
in  brownish  blotches  scattered  over  the 
body  ;  from  which  a  corrosive  serous  fluid 
is  discharged,  The  toes  and  fingers  fre- 
quently become  ulcerated  ;  and  sometimes 
the  unfortunate  invalid  looses  all  the  fingers 
on  one  hand  or  both,  or  all  the  toes  on  the 
feet ;  and  the  soles  of  the  feet  are  sometimes 
marked  with  deep  fissures,  or  scooped  out 
into  ugly  sores.  The  blotches  on  different 
parts  of  the  body  sometimes  degenerate 
into  foul  and  fetid  ulcers  of  an  irregular 
jagged  appearance.  This  miserable  disease 
sometimes  continues  to  harass  the  individ- 
ual for  years  ;  and  it  frequently  results  in 
4eath.  I  have,  however,  frequently  seen 
native  persons  who  had  recovered,  with  the 
loss  of  a  portion  of  their  hands  or  feet,  or 
of  both,  after  having  suffered  excruciatingly 
for  months  or  years.  I  never  saw  but  one 


well-marked    case  among    the  Liberians, 
and  that  was  in  a  very  old  man. 

The  most  common  and  troublesome  cu- 
taneous affections,  (if  they  may  be  so  clas- 
sed,) which  occur  in  Liberia,  are  indolent 
ulcers ;  which  sometimes  appear  spontane- 
ously ;  but  which  generally  result  from 
injuries,  by  which  the  skin  is  broken.  The 
texture  of  the  cutaneous  and  the  muscular 
fibre  seems  to  be  more  lax  in  tropical  than 
in  temperate  climates  ;  and  slight  scratches, 
or  abrasions  of  the  skin,  are  much  more 
liable  to  degenerate  into  ulcers, — the  degree 
of  liability  depending  on  the  constitu- 
tional temperament  of  individuals,  their 
habits,  mode  of  living,  &c.  White  persons 
and  mulattoes  are  more  subject  to  ulcerous 
affections  as  well  as  to  most  other  diseases, 
than  black  persons  ;  in  consequence,  I  pre- 
sume, of  their  physical  systems  being  less 
adapted  to  the  peculiarities  of  the  climate ; — 
a  fact  which  must  be  admitted  by  all.  These 
ulcers,  though  not  generally  very  painful, 
are  exceedingly  annoying  ;  especially  when 
they  occur  on  the  feet ;  and  they  do  not 
generally  heal  readily  ;  sometimes  continu- 
ing for  several  months.  If  persons  would 
be  sufficiently  careful  to  avoid  injuries  of 
the  skin,  they  would  not  be  very  liable  to 
these  troublesome  affections. 

Chronic  nervous  diseases  are  not  very 
common  in  Liberia.  I  occasionally  met 
with  hysteria  in  females  ;  and  I  saw  one 
or  two  cases  of  epilepsy,  and  one  case  of 
tetanus,  or  locked-jaw.  Convulsive  affec- 
tions are  very  rarely  met  with,  in  either  in- 
fants or  adults.  Paralytic  affections  are 
occasionally,  though  seldom,  seen.  I 
never  saw  a  distinctly  marked  case  of 
whooping-cough  in  Liberia  ;  nor  did  I  ever 
hear  of  its  having  prevailed  epidemically, 

Flatulent  colic  frequently  demands  the 
the  attention  of  the  physician.  It  is  gen- 
erally the  result  of  the  imprudent  use  of 
some  indigestible  article  of  food  ;  and  i* 


SKETCHES    OF    LIBERIA. 


37 


Intestinal  Worms— Enlargement  of  the  Spleen— Catarrhal  Affections,  &c. 


occurs  more  frequently  in  persons,  during 
the  first  few  months  of  their  residence,  than 
in  older  settlers.  Sometimes  the  stomach 
and  bowels  become  greatly  distended  with 
gas  ;  and  the  patient  suffers  very  violent 
pain  in  the  abdomen.  I  had  several  attacks 
of  this  painful  affection,  during  the  first 
year  of  my  residence  in  Liberia ;  the  most 
violent  of  which  was  caused  by  the  eating 
of  a  small  piece  of  cheese.  I  was  generally 
able  to  relieve  the  patient,  afflicted  with  this 
disease,  by  the  administration  of  a  tea- 
spoonful  of  laudanum,  followed  by  a  full 
dose  of  castor  oil ;  the  operation  of  which 
was  sometimes  assisted  by  an  active  injec- 
tion ;  together  with  the  application  of  a 
large  pepper  poultice  over  the  abdomen. 
In  some  cases,  especially  when  attended 
with  a  tendency  to  diarrhea,  I  gave  nothing 
but  the  laudanum  ;  or,  what  sometimes  had 
a  better  effect,  a  pill  composed  of  one-sixth 
or  one-fourth  of  a  grain  of  morphine  and 
two  grains  of  camphor.  Persons  cannot  be 
too  careful  in  avoiding  the  use  of  such  ar- 
ticles of  food,  as  are  not  easily  digestible. 

A  very  common  affection,  especially 
among  children,  is  that  of  intestinal  worms. 
The  most  common  kind  of  worms  which 
infest  the  alimentary  canal,  is  the  ascares 
lumbricoides,  or  common  round  worm.  All 
the  other  varieties,  however,  are  sometimes 
observed.  I  have  seen  several  cases,  in 
which  the  individuals  voided  detached  por- 
tions of  the  tenia,  or  tape-worm.  In  pre- 
scribing for  patients  having  worms,  I 
depended  more  on  the  free  use  of  spirits  of 
turpentine,  combined  with,  or  followed  by, 
castor  oil,  than  any  other  vermifuge,  in  all 
the  varieties.  Sometimes  I  gave  a  few 
grains  of  calomel,  followed  in  three  or  four 
hours  by  a  free  dose  of  oil  and  turpentine. 

In  Liberia,  as  in  other  malarious  countries 
or  districts,  cases  of  enlargement  of  the 
spleen — vulgarly  called  "fever-cake" — are 
frequently  observed — the  result  of  repeated 
attacks  of  intermittent  fever.  This  is  much 
3 


more  common  in  white  than  in  colored  resi- 
dents: very  few  white  persons,  indeed,  are 
able  to  live  five  years  in  Liberia,  without 
having  more  or  less  enlargement  of  the 
spleen.  It  is  more  frequently  met  with  in 
mulattoes  than  in  black  persons:  indeed,  I 
do  not  remember  a  single  case  which  came 
under  my  observation,  in  a  person  of  una- 
dulterated African  extraction  ;  although  I 
have  no  doubt  that  such  persons  are  some- 
times thus  affected.  The  principal  difficulty 
which  usually  arises  from  this  affection,  is, 
that  it  predisposes  to  dropsical  affections. 
In  many  cases,  however,  dropsical  effusions 
do  not  follow  enlargement  of  the  spleen  ; 
except  occasional  swelling  of  the  lower  ex- 
tremities. A  protracted  sea-voyage,  or  a 
change  of  climate,  is  the  only  means  with 
which  I  am  acquainted,  which  will  effect  a 
reduction  of  this  burdensome  appendage. 

Slight  catarrhal  affections,  (influenza,) 
are  occasionally  experienced  in  Liberia ; 
especially  during  the  harmattan  season  ; 
but  these  generally  pass  off  in  a  few  days, 
without  any  serious  injury.  I  never  knew 
a  case  to  result  in  active  inflammation  of  any 
part  of  the  respiratory  apparatus. 

Some  other  diseases,  which  are  common 
to  most  countries,  may  be  occasionally 
observed  in  Liberia ;  but  the  variety  is 
much  less  than  in  the  United  States  ;  and, 
except  in  some  old  chronic  affections,  in 
broken-down  constitutions,  convalescence 
s  generally  much  more  rapid  ;  in  conse- 
quence of  the  less  violence  of  the  attack. 
Among  the  many  attacks  of  fever  which  I 
experienced,  I  never  was  obliged  to  remain 
n  my  room  more  than  a  week,  at  any  one 
time ;  and  I  very  seldom  was  confined  to 
my  bed  longer  than  twenty-four  hours  at  a 
time.  The  danger  in  new-comers  generally 
consists  more  in  the  frequency,  than  in  the 
violence,  of  the  attacks  of  sickness.  And 
he  majority  of  colored  immigrants,  who 
have  sufficient  prudence  to  use  such  means 
for  the  preservation  of  their  health  in  Li- 
beria, as  an  enlightened  judgment  would 


38 


SKETCHES    OF    LIBERIA. 


Sleepy  Disease.' 


dictate,  usually  enjoy  as  good  health,  after 
the  first  year  of  their  residence,  as  they 
formerly  enjoyed  in  the  United  States.  In 
some -cases,  indeed,  the  state  of  the  health 
of  immigrants  is  decidedly  improved  by  the 
change  of  residence  from  America  to  Afri- 
ca. The  large  majority  of  cases  of  sick- 
ness, which  came  under  my  observation, 
among  those  persons  who  had  resided  a 
year  or  more  in  Liberia,  was  in  indolent, 
and  consequently  indigent,  persons,  whose 
prudence  was  commensurate  with  their  im- 
providence. Indeed,  in  view  of  the  heed- 
lessness,  carelessness,  and  indolence  of 
many  persons,  who  were  scarcely  ever  sick, 
I  was  astonished  at  their  continued  exemp- 
tion from  disease, 

I  will  conclude  this  brief  medical  history 
of  Liberia,  with  a  short  notice  of  a  peculiar 
endemic  affection ;  which  may  be  termed 
Lethargus,  but  which  is  commonly  called 
the  "Sleepy  Disease."  J  have  seen  eight 
or  ten  cases  of  this  somniferous  malady; 
five  or  six  of  which  were  among  persons 
who  had  emigrated  from  the  United  States. 
It  is,  however,  much  more  frequently  ex- 
hibited among  the  aborigines  than  among 
the  Liberians.  The  only  characteristic 
mark  of  this  affection,  is  an  irresistible 
tendency  to  sleep — the  patient  frequently 
falling  asleep,  even  while  eating.  He  can 
generally  be  easily  aroused  ;  but  he  almost 
immediately  relapses  into  a  state  of  pro- 
found slumber.  The  patient  scarcely  ever 
experiences  the  slightest  pain  ;  and  no  feb- 
rile symptoms  are  usually  exhibited,  until 
near  the  fatal  close  of  the  incurable  malady. 
The  appetite  is  usually  voracious,  and  the 
bowels  obstinately  constipated.  The  food 
taken  does  not  seem  to  nourish  the  system; 
in  consequence  of  the  disordered  state  of 
the  organs  of  digestion  and  nutrition ;  the 
difficulty  existing  principally,  perhaps,  in 
the  mesenteric  glands.  Indeed,  the  whole 
glandular  system,  including  the  lymphatic 
and  the  lacteal  glands,  seems  to  be  in  a 


torpid  state,  in  this  affection.  No  peculiar 
marks  of  disease  are  usually  exhibited,  on 
examinations  after  death.  In  all  cases  of 
which  I  have  heard,  the  brain  especially 
appeared  to  be  in  a  healthy  condition — at 
least,  that  organ  exhibited  no  perceptible 
evidence  of  disease  ;  and  no  other  part  of 
the  body  exhibited  any  peculiar  organical 
affection  ;  except  some  of  the  lymphatic 
glands,  which  presented  an  enlarged  and 
inflamed  appearance.  Those  about  the 
neck  generally  appear  considerably  swelled; 
and  the  natives  sometimes  extirpate  those 
enlarged  glands,  under  the  impression  that 
they  are  the  source  of  the  affection  ;  with 
what  success  in  removing  the  disease  may 
be  readily  imagined  by  any  intelligent 
person,  in  whom  the  bump  of  credulity  is 
not  too  largely  developed. 

Among  the  various  causes  of  this  strange 
affection,  which  have  been  assigned,  per- 
haps no  particular  one  can  be  fully  relied 
on.  Indolent  habits,  unwholesome  and 
indigestible  vegetable  diet,  together  with 
some  peculiar  influence  of  the  climate, 
associated  with  the  prolonged  action  of 
miasmata  or  malaria,  operating  on  a  sys- 
tem peculiarly  predisposed  to  lethargy, 
may  be  regarded  as  the  exi citing  cause,  by 
which  functional  derangement  of  the  ner- 
vous system  is  produced,  resulting  in  a 
lost  balance  of  the  circulation,  and  a  gene- 
ral functional  impairment  of  the  whole 
glandular  apparatus  of  the  body.  The 
disease  (if  disease  it  may  be  called,)  al- 
ways approaches  gradually;  sometimes 
several  months  elapsing  before  it  is  fully 
developed.  And,  although  I  have  had 
pretty  fair  opportunities  of  testing  the  vir- 
tues of  various  medicinal  agents,  in  differ- 
ent stages  of  the  disease  ;  yet,  I  never  was 
able  to  effect  more  than  a  temporary  cessa- 
tion of  it,  in  the  beginning,  or  a  temporary 
mitigation  of  it,  after  its  full  development. 

The  most  graphic  notice  of  this  lazy  di- 
sease, with  which  I  have  met,  is  that  given 
in  the  "Journal  of  an  American  Cruiser  ;'* 


SKETCHES   OF   LIBERIA. 


39 


Conclusion. 


and,  as  I  saw  the  patient,  in  company  with 
the  author,  I  will  subjoin  an  extract  from 
that  interesting  little  book.  "  We  entered 
the  hut  without  ceremony,  and  looked 
about  us  for  old  Mamma's  beautiful  grand- 
daughter. But,  on  beholding  the  object  of 
our  search,  a  kind  of  remorse  or  dread 
came  over  us  ;  such  as  often  affects  those 
who  intrude  upon  the  awfulness  of  slum- 
ber. The  girl  lay  asleep  in  the  adjoining 
apartment,  on  a  mat  that  was  spread  over 
the  hard  ground  ;  and  with  no  pillow  be- 
neath her  cheek-.  She  slept  so  quietly ,  and 
drew  such  imperceptible  breath,  that  I 
scarcely  thought  her  alive.  With  some 
difficulty,  she  was  aroused,  and  she  awoke 
with  a  frightened  cry — a  strange  and  bro- 
ken murmur,  as  if  she  were  looking  dimly 
out  of  her  sleep,  and  knew  not  whether  our 
figures  were  real,  or  only  the  phantasies  of 
a  dream.  Her  eyes  were  wild  and  glassy, 
and  she  seemed  to  be  in  pain.  While 
awake,  there  was  a  nervous  twitching 
about  her  mouth  and  in  her  fingers ;  but, 
being  again  extended  on  the  mat,  and  left 
to  herself,  these  symptoms  of  disquietude 
passed  away;  and  she  almost  immediately 
sank  again  into  the  deep  and  heavy  sleep, 
in  which  we  found  her.  This  poor  girl 
had  been  suffering — no,  not  suffering,  for, 
except  when  forcibly  aroused,  there  appears 
to  be  no  uneasiness,  but  she  had  been 
lingering  two  months  in  a  disease  peculiar 
lo  Africa — commonly  called  the  '  sleepy 
disease.'  Her  aspect  was  inconceivably 
affecting.  It  was  strange  to  behold  her  so 
quietly  involved  in  sleep  ;  from  which  it 
might  be  supposed  she  would  awake  so  full 
of  youthful  life— and  yet  to  know  that  this 
was  no  refreshing  slumber ;  but  a  spell  in 
which  she  was  fast  fading  away  from  the 
eyes  of  those  that  loved  her.  Whatever 
might  chance,  be  it  grief  or  joy,  the  effect 
would  be  the  same.  Whoever  should 
•shake  her  by  the  arm — whether  the  accents 
of  a  friend  fell  feebly  on  her  ear,  or  those 
of  strangers,  like  ourselves,  the  only  re- 
sponse would  be  that  troubled  cry;  as  of  a 


spirit  that  hovered  on  the  confines  of  both 
worlds,  and  could  have  sympathy  with 
neither.  The  peal  of  the  last  trumpet  only 
will  summon  her  out  of  that  mysterious 
sleep." 

CONCLUSION. 

Had  I  not  been  apprehensive  that  I  might 
unnecessarily  swell  the  size  of  this  little 
work,  by  details  which  may  be  easily  ob- 
tained from  other  sources,  I  might  have 
dwelt,  at  considerable  length,  on  the  con- 
sideration of  the  nature  of  the  civil  govern- 
ment, and  of  the  political  institutions  of 
Liberia. 

I  might  also  have  made  particular  allu- 
sion to  the  results  of  missionary  operations 
in  Liberia,  and  its  vicinity.  But  as  there 
are  various  sources  whence  information  may 
be  derived  on  this  subject  ;  and  as  my  sit- 
uation did  not  afford  me  opportunities  for 
making  those  frequent  and  protracted  ob- 
servations which  I  regard  as  necessary,  in 
order  to  the  presentation  of  strictly  impar- 
tial and  truthful  statements,  respecting  the 
operations  and  results  of  the  missionary 
enterprise  ;  and  also  as  such  allusions  and 
details  do  not  come  within  the  scope  of  the 
prescribed  design  of  this  work,  it  being  in- 
tended particularly  for  the  information  of 
those  persons  who  may  be  in  search  of 
truth,  with  the  view  of  making  Liberia 
the  place  of  their  future  residence ;  I  do 
not  deem  it  necessary  or  proper  for  me  to 
dwell  on  the  detail  of  particulars,  relative 
to  the  operations  of  missionary  societies  ; 
especially  as  I  do  not  regard  myself  as  al- 
together competent,  as  before  observed,  to 
present  full  and  faithful  statements  on  this 
subject ;  and  as  I  feel  disposed  to  write 
only  what  I  do  know,  and  testify  what  I 
have  seen. 

In  reference  to  the  civil  government  of 
Liberia,  I  may  here  simply  state,  that  it 
is  based  on  the  principles  of  republicanism; 
and,  in  every  essential  particular,  it  may 
be  regarded  as  a  miniature  representation 
of  the  Government  of  the  United  States;  the 


40 


SKETCHES    OF    LIBERIA 


President — Senators — Representatives— Expenses  of  the  Government,  &c. 


only  particular  point  of  difference  being  in 
the  name  of  the  national  assembly,  which 
is  styled  Legislature  instead  of  Congress  ; 
and  in  the  time  of  service  of  the  principal 
officers  of  the  Government.  The  President 
is  elected  by  the  popular  vote,  for  two 
years,  and  he  is  eligible  to  re-election. — 
The  Senators,  of  whom  there  are  two  from 
each  county — six  in  all — are  elected  for 
four  years,  and  the  Representatives,  of 
whom  there  are  eight  in  all,  are  elected  for 
two  years.  The  only  cabinet  officers  who 
have  yet  been  commissioned  are,  the 
Secretaries  of  State  and  of  the  Treasury, 
and  the  Attorney  General.  AH  the  officers 
of  justice  are  appointed  by  the  President, 
with  the  consent  of  the  Senate.  The  ju- 
dicial power  of  the  Republic  is  vested  in  a 
supreme  court,  a  court  of  quarter  sessions", 
in  each  county,  and  magistrate's  courts, 
which  meet  monthly.  No  white  person  is 
allowed  to  become  a  citizen;  consequently, 
white  residents  cannot  hold  any  office  in 
the  Government. 

Previous  to  the  establishment  of  the  Re- 
public the  current  expenses  of  the  Govern- 
ment were  defrayed  by  the  duties  on  impor- 
tations ;  the  average  annual  amount  of 
which  was  about  $8,000.  But  as  addi- 
tional expenses  have  been  incurred  by  the 
change  in  the  political  relations,  the  amount 
derived  from  that  source  alone  is  not  suffi- 
cient for  the  necessary  expenditures  in  the 
support  of  the  Government.  Hence,  the  pas- 
sage of  a  law  at  the  first  session  of  the  Legis- 
lature of  the  Republic,  in  January  1848,  by 
which  the  Government  monopolises  the 
trade  in  certain  articles.  It  is  calculated 
that  the  revenue  arising  from  the  profits  on 
the  sale  of  these  articles,  together  with  the 
custom  duties,  will  be  sufficient  to  meet 
the  expenses  of  the  Government.  I  am 
apprehensive  that  this  governmental  mono- 
poly will  not  operate  so  well  as  some  of  its 
sanguine  supporters  imagine  ;  and  that  cir- 
cumstances will  render  it  expedient  for  a 
system  of  direct  taxation  to  be  adopted, 


and  carried  into  operation  ;  or  for  a  con- 
siderable increase  of  the  tariff. 

The  Government  of  Liberia  is  now  al- 
together in  the  hands,  and  under  the  entire 
management  of  the  citizens  of  Liberia,  no 
white  person,  on  either  side  of  the  Atlantic, 
being,  in  any  way,  connected  with  its  ope- 
rations. And  if  the  disputed  question  has 
not  yet  been  fully  settled,  whether  colored 
persons  are  capable  of  self-government  or 
not,  a  few  years  will  decide  the  point.  The 
people  of  Liberia  are  now  fairly  "  self- 
poised,"  and  feeling  confident,  as  I  do,  of 
the  clemency  and  forbearance  of  all  fo- 
reign nations  towards  that  infant  Republic, 
so  long  as  the  Government  shall  be  main- 
tained on  the  principles  of  national  recti- 
tude, (without  which  no  government  is 
worthy  of  encouragement,)  I  am  quite  sa- 
tisfied that  if  the  Republic  of  Liberia  shall 
ingloriously  fall,  and  her  institutions  be  de- 
molished, or  if  those  institutions  shall  be 
voluntarily  transferred  to  the  control  and 
management  of  any  foreign  power,  the  re- 
sult will  indubitably  exhibit  the  melancho- 
ly fact,  that  the  maintenance  of  an  inde- 
pendent government  by  the  colored  race  is 
at  least,  a  subject  of  dubious  practicability. 
I  confidently  hope,  however,  that  the  "  lone 
star"  of  the  Republic  of  Liberia,  which  is 
now  culminating  over  a  portion  of  the 
western  coast  of  benighted  Africa,  will 
continue  to  shine,  not  like  the  brilliant  me- 
teor, or  the  erratic  comet,  but  like  the  efful- 
gent orb  of  day,  which  sheds  his  enliven- 
ing beams  with  increasing  splendor  as  he 
ascends  above  the  fleecy  clouds  which  over- 
hang the  eastern  sky. 

In  addition  to  the  brief  reflections  which 
have  been  thrown  out,  in  the  different  parts 
of  this  work,  I  would  here  make  a  few 
suggestions  which  maybe  worthy  the  par- 
ticular attention  of  those  persons  who  may 
emigrate  to  Liberia.  The  reader  will,  no 
doubt,  be  fully  convinced,  if  he  believes 
the  statements  herein  exhibited,  of  the  practi- 
cability of  a  comfortable  competency  being 
realized  in  Liberia,  as  the  reward  of  indus- 


SKETCHES   OF   LIBERIA. 


41 


The  Cultivation  of  the  Soil— the  chief  source  of  Wealth  and  Independence. 


try  and  frugality.  And  the  intelligent  man  of 
color  who  is  accustomed  to  observation  and 
reflection  cannot  but  be  convinced  that  he 
may  enjoy  privileges  there— the  privileges 
of  a  freeman  in  the  full  import  of  the  term, 
of  which  he  is  virtually  deprived  in  every 
part  of  the  United  States,  by  the  conven- 
tional rules  of  society  among  the  domi- 
nant inheritors  of  a  fairer  complexion.  But 
while  I  do  not  hesitate,  in  view  of  the 
facts  set  forth  in  this  work,  to  recommend 
Liberia  as  an  inviting  field  for  enterprise, 
and  a  desirable  place  of  residence  ;  I  may 
here  state  that,  during  my  residence  there, 
my  eyes  were  not  too  frequently  dazzled  by 
captivating  sights  of  agricultural  industry, 
and  of  mechanical  enterprise,  to  blind  me 
to  the  conviction  that  much  remains  to  be 
done,  before  the  little  African  Republic  can 
be  regarded  as  an  earthly  paradise. 

In  reference  to  the  cultivation  of  the  soil^ 
especially,  which  is  the  true  road  to  inde-l 
pendence  in  any  country,  I  may  remark,! 
that  comparatively  few  of  the  present  citi-i 
zens  of  Liberia  are  regularly  and  syste-j 
matically  engaged  in  this  branch  of  practi-j 
cal  industry.  Unfortunately  for  the  pros- 
perity of  Liberia,  many  of  the  earlier  settlers 
fancied  that  they  had  found  a  more  easy 
and  more  speedy  highway  to  Wealth,  in  the 
wholesale,  retail,  and  demoralizing  system 
of  barter  with  their  ignorant  aboriginal 
neighbors  ;  and  many  of  their  successors, 
lured  on  by  this  apparently  accommodating  j 
means  of  ease  and  comfort,  started  their' 
little  crafts  in  the  wakes  of  those  of  their 
predecessors ;  and  not  a  few  of  them,  in 
their  eagerness  to  become  rich,  have  failed 
to  be  warned  by  the  disasters  which  attend- 
ed many  of  those  who  preceded  them.  But 
happily  for  Liberia,  the  traffic  incanr-wood 
and  palm  oil  is  becoming  so  unprofitable 
in  consequence  of  excess  of  competition 
not  only  among  the  Liberians  themselves 
but  among  foreign  traders,  that  it  mus 
soon  occupy  a  station,  as  a  source  o 


wealth,  inferior  to  that  of  the  cultivation  of  V. 
the  soil :  the  siren  song  of  commercial   ex-     J 
periment  must  give  place  to  the  cheerfnl    / 
hum  of  agricultural  industry.     I  trust  that/ 
the   citizens  of   Liberia  are   generally  be- 
coming aroused  to  a   consciousness  of  this 
important  truth,  and  indeed  during  the  last 
few  years  more  attention  has  been  given  to 
agriculture  than  previously.     Yet  much  re- 
mains to  be  accomplished,  to   demonstrate 
to  distant  nations  the  fact  that  Liberia  is  one 
of  the    most  productive    countries  in   the 
world ;  a  fact,  which  I  believe  may,  and  I 
hope  will    be  clearly  demonstrated,  by  the 
quantity   and  quality   of  agricultural  pro- 
ducts which  maybe  exported,  and    by  the 
comfort  and  independence  of  a  respectable 
yeomanry. 

A  more  regular,  systematic^  and  perse- 
vering course  of  farming  operations  must, 
however,  be  introduced.  Greater  attention 
ought  also  to  bfi  given  to  agricultural  ex- 
periments, to  develop  the  resources  of  the 
soil ;  and  to  ascertain  the  most  appropriate 
periods  of  the  year,  for  the  planting  of  dif- 
ferent vegetable  substances.  Much  more  \/ 
attention  should  also  be  given  to  the  raising 
of  different  kinds  of  stock  ;  and  to  the  in- 
troduction of  various  mechanical  inventions, 
in  carrying  on  agricultural  operations. 

One  very  important  thing 'which  has  re- 
ceived very  limited  attention  in  Liberia,  is 
that  of  fencing,  or  the  enclosing  of  lots  and 
fields;  by  the  neglect  of  which,  many  per- 
sons have  frequently  lost  the  principal  part 
of  the  fruits  of  their  labor,  in  the  tilling  of 
the  soil.  Undoubtedly,  the  best  fences 
which  can  be  made  in  Liberia  are  those 
that  are  commonly  called  ' '  growing  fences , ' ' 
made  by  planting  certain  shrubs  closely 
together,  and  trimming  them  occasion- 
ally. Several  different  kinds  of  shrubs 
may  be  easily  and  abundantly  procured, 
for  making  these  fences.  And,  with  proper 
attention,  a  piece  of  land  may,  in  two  or 
three  years,  be  thus  securely  and  substan- 


SKETCHES    OP    LIBfiltlA. 


Concluding  Remarks. 


tially  enclosed  with  a  fence  which  will  last 
many  years. 

Hitherto,  the  people  of  Liberia  generally 
have  been  too  easily  intimidated  or  discour- 
aged by  comparatively  small  obstacles ; 
some  of  which  have  been  more  imaginary 
than  real.  Difficulties,  however,  do  really 
exist;  but  these  difficulties  are  generally 
far  less  than  those  which  exist  in  carrying 
on  farming  operations  in  any  part  of  the 
United  States.  And  I  am  quite  satisfied 
that  every  thing  which  is  really  necessary 
for  human  subsistence  and  comfort,  to- 
gether with  many  luxuries,  can  be  Raised 
in  Liberia,  with  much  less  labor  than 
would  be  required  to  procure  the  neces- 
saries of  life  in -the  United  States. 

Let  the  cultivation  of  the  soil*  then>  re- 
ceive that  attention  which  it  should  receive, 
us  the  principal  means  of  wealth— let  a 
regular,  systematic,  and  persevering  course 
of  agricultural  operations  be  carried  on  ; 
and  the  citizens  of  Liberia  may  live  in  ease 
and  comfort  and  independence. 

In  tracing  the  various  events  connected 
with  the  rise  and  progress  of  the  Repub^- 
lic  of  Liberia,  no  unprejudiced  individual 
can  for  a  moment  doubt  that  the  smiles  of 
Heaven  have  rested  upon  it ;  and  that  the 
sheltering  wings  of  a  kind  Providence 
have  been  spread  over  it  for  good — not  only 
to  the  immigrants  from  this  country,  but 
to  the  benighted  and  degraded  aborigines 
of  Africa — a  land  which  has  so  long  been 
enveloped  in  the  darkness  of  heathenism.— 
And,  in  view  of  the  social  and  political 
position  and  relations  of  colored  persons  in 
the  United  States,  contrasted  with  the 
position  and  relations  of  the  free  and  inde- 
pendent citizens  of  that  young  Republic, 
it  must  be  admitted  by  all  candid  persons, 
that  the  condition  of  those  people  in  Li- 
beria who  are  disposed  to  use  the  necessary 
appliances  for  making  themselves  truly  in- 
dependent, is  vastly  superior  to  that  of  free 
people  of  color  in  any  part  of  this  country. 

Though  many  difficulties  have  been  en- 


countered in  the  progressive  exaltation  of 
the  infant  Colony  to  the  present  interesting 
and  flourishing  Republic,  and  though 
many  obstacles  will  necessarily  be  presented 
to  its  onward  progress  ;  yet,  it  is  clearly 
evident  that  the  experiment  has  been  fairly 
tried,  the  experiment  of  establishing  on  the 
coast  of  Africa  a  community  and  government 
of  colored  immigrants  from  this  country, — 
and  has  been  crowned  with  complete  suc- 
cess ;•-— a  success  even  beyond  the  most 
sanguine  expectations  of  the  benevolent 
founders  of  the  Colonization  Society  ;  who 
amidst  difficulties  which  Seemed  almost  in- 
surmountable, determined  to  try  what 
could  be  done  towards  the  establishment  on 
the  coast  of  Africa  of  an  asylum  and  a  home 
for  the  people  of  color  of  the  United  States ; 
who,  in  the  language  of  a  public  journal- 
ist, "  are  here  restricted  in  the  exercise  of 
the  very  elementary  principles  of  existence 
best  calculated  to  expand  and  exalt  the 
heart  and  mind,"  and  who,  in  every  part 
of  this  country,  must  continue  to  labor  Un- 
der political  and  social  disadvantages  ;  from 
which  they  can  be  fully  rescued  in  no  other 
way  than  by  voluntarily  emigrating  to  a 
country  in  which  the  restrictions  that  are 
here  thrown  around  them  cannot  operate 
— a  country  in  which  they  may  enjoy  the 
benefits  of  free  government,  with  all  the 
blessings  of  civil  and  religious  liberty. 

In  the  providence  of  God,  by  the  efforts  of 
those  who  have  been  "laborers  together 
with  him,"  such  an  asylum  has  been  es- 
tablished :— difficulties  which  at  first  appear- 
ed almost  insuperable  have  been  overcome  ; 
and  Liberia  now  presents  an  inviting 
field  for  commercial  enterprise  and  agricul- 
tural industry,  and  a  desirable  home  for  all 
persons  of  color  who  wish  to  realize  the 
privileges  of  freedom  and  the  blessings  of* 
independence. 

But  while  I  would  heartily  recommend. 
Liberia  as  a  desirable  place  of  residence 
for  colored  persons  who  are  disposed  to 
appreciate  the  advantages  and  to  improve 


SKETCHES   OF    LIBERIA. 


43 


Concluding  Remarks. 


the  privileges  there  afforded,  I  would  not 
adrise  any  person  to  emigrate  thither,  who 
will  not  go  cheerfully,  and  with  a  deter- 
mination to  try  to  overcome  every  obstacle 
that  may  be  presented.     I  am  decidedly  of 
opinion,   that,  with    a  cheerful,   contented 
mind,  and  industrious  habits,  colored  per- 
sons may  live  more  easily,  more  comfortably, 
and  more  independently  than  they  can  in  the 
United  States.     In  Liberia,  however,  as  in 
]/  all  other  new  countries,  industry  and  per- 
severance are  necessary ;  and  while  to  the 
man  of  enterprise  and  frugality  it  affords  a 
desirable  home,  and  promises  a  rich  reward 
to  his  labors,  it  offers  no  encouragement  to 
those  who  expect  to  live  in  luxurious  ease 
and  pampered  indolence. 

In  conclusion,  I  would  repeat,  that  I 
firmly  believe  that  the  hand  of  an  overrul- 
ing Providence  has  been  extended  over  the 
progressive  course  of  that  little  Republic. 
And,  whatever  may  be  said  in  opposition 
to  the  wise  and  benevolent  scheme  of 
Colonization ;  and  however  apparently 
plausible  may  be  the  objections  of  persons 
who  are  unfriendly  to  the  cause  ;  it  is  clear- 
ly evident  to  any  individual  whose  mind  is 
unprejudiced,  especially  to  those  who  have 
had  opportunities  for  personal  observation 
and  investigation  as  to  the  results  of  that 
enterprise,  that  it  is  one  of  the  instruments 
in  the  hands  of  the  Almighty  Ruler  of  the 
universe  for  carrying  out  his  wise  designs 
with  reference  to  Africa.  And  in  view  of 
what  has  already  been  accomplished,  and  of 
the  incalculable  amount  of  good  which  may 
yet  be  accomplished,  through  the  instru- 
mentality of  the  Colonization  Society,  and 


of  the  Republic  of  Liberia  ;  surely  no  true 
friend  of  the  colored  race  can  consistently 
oppose  the  operations  of  the  former,  or 
withhold  the  expression  or  exhibition  of  a 
sincere  desire  for  the  continued  prosperity 
of  the  latter. 

Through  the  instrumentality  of  the  Gov- 
ernment of  Liberia  ;  much  has  been  done 
towards  the  suppression  of  the  nefarious 
traffic  in  slaves.  Within  the  jurisdiction  of 
that  miniature  Republic,  whence,  a  few 
years  ago,  hundreds  and  thousands  of 
miserable  beings  were  transported,  like  in- 
animate objects  of  merchandize,  to  the 
western  world,  the  slave-trade  has  been  en- 
tirely abolished ;  and  many  of  the  con- 
tiguous native  tribes  have  laid  down  their 
weapons  of  warfare,  and  have  sought  the 
protection  of  that  Government.  And  I 
verily  believe  that  God  intends  that  the 
mental  illumination  of  the  degraded  ab- 
origines of  Africa;  is  to  be  effected  chiefly 
by  her  own  returning  civilized  and  Chris- 
tian children — by  the  influence  and  example 
of  colored  immigrants  and  teachers  from 
this  side  of  the  Atlantic;  carrying  with 
them  and  introducing  among  the  ignorant , 
natives,  habits  of  civilized  life,  and  the 
blessings  of  the  gospel  of  peace  and  salva- 
tion; and  by  the  missionary  labors  of  en- 
lightened and  converted  native  inhabitants. 
Thus  shall  the  belligerant  hordes  of  Africa  be 
induced  to  convert  their  instruments  of  war- 
fare into  agricultural  implements  ;  thus  shall 
the  slave-trade  be  effectually  and  forever 
suppressed  ;  and  thus  shall  Ethiopia  be 
taught  to  stretch  out  her  hands  unto  God, 


M192235 


THE  UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 
BERKELEY 


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